The Bike Messenger and the Delivery Boy
by trumpetgal
Summary: Katie Marshburn survives the Apocalypse with her friend Jacob and they are heading to her grandfather's house near Fort Benning. While they are there, they help and house the Altlanta Group, where she meets and falls for Glenn. Is she making the right move to fall for him, even when it is the end of the world? And does he love her back? Glenn/OC no Maggie in this story!
1. So Far So Good

"Katie." I heard next to me, some sort of fog coming through my brain as I blinked a few times. The harsh light hitting my face as I saw the lights in the room coming on. I grabbed the blanket without thinking and pulled to my bare shoulders, trying to get some more warmth in before I knew I had to get up. My red hair stuck to my face and I pushed it out of my way, seeing Jacob above me and squatting down to get to my level. His shotgun in hand and a bottle of water in the other hand, looking at me with a tilted head and his green eyes,

"It's time to move now. We'll make it today to your house." he said to me in his shot tone that he hardly uses, only when we are alone and not running for our lives. I nodded my head, feeling how heavy it is and I get up slowly, stretching out my back and legs before I get up to my feet. I looked down at my white wife-beater I was wearing, a bit sweaty and my blue skinny jeans with boots. I pulled my hair back in a ponytail and braided my bangs to the side, seeing my reflection in the mirror of the locker room we were in for the night. I took in a deep breath and replayed the same words in my head as before:

I am Katie Marsburn, I'mm 22 years old, and I am still living after the Apocalypse.

My father told me once, that there will come a moment where you have to decide whether or not to fight in order to survive. I never thought I would reach that point to be honest. I thought life was going to be a easy road for me to take. I had no problems to worry about, nothing to think about that would change my future.

That was up until the Apocalypse happened.

I was only 22 when it happened. Pretty young for my age really. I was in New York as a Bike Messenger when I heard the news and saw the breakout. It sounded too surreal for me to understand, too fantasy to even fathom. But it happened, and it happened fast in New York. I was on my own at that time, fresh out of College and trying to find a decent career. The one person I was with when it happened was my childhood friend, Jacob, whom I went to school with and was working with. We both ran out of town before we could get caught up in the massacre that spread like wildfire. Out futures were on hold, giving us the notion that nothing was ever going to go back to being normal.

Never again.

I grew up in a rather large manor in Georgia, but being the independent child that I was I had to move out as soon as I could. My father was a Captain at Fort Benning, where he's been stationed since the day I was born. My mother as a homemaker, raising myself and four other siblings as my dad worked at Benning. My upbringing was normal for a military family, but I wanted to get away from them. Something about being under the strict rules of my father and his way of life rubbed me the wrong way. I was the trouble maker of the family, since I was the eldest daughter and the second oldest to my brother Nathan. However, I did learn how to shoot a gun and how to fight, much to my mother's dismay and bitterness. No matter how hard I tried to please my father, nothing was good enough in his eyes. At least, that's what I thought.

My grandfather owned the house my parents lived in outside of Fort Benning, about 10 miles out to be exact. He was the one out of the whole family that kept me grounded from my ways of trying to reach my father. I looked to him when it came to learning about respect, giving to others and putting others before myself. He would house those who were running away, and help them get back on their feet. I saw this as something that I needed to change in my life, being more lenient with my parents and more helpful around the house. I knew the past was behind me, and I had to change for the better.

Since the Apocalypse I was on my own with Jacob, running from town to town until we can reach Georgia on our own. It was harder than it seemed, since the only thing we both had were our bikes and chains we had to use to fend off Walkers that would come close enough to bite. But once we found gun shops and looted off of them, it got easier since I knew how to shoot. It was only the two of us, and we never stayed in one place for far too long since we knew the herds would move from place to place to find food. Jacob knew how to track and hunt for food, since his father was a hunter and taught him how to hunt. I looked to him when it came to learning how to find food, find tracks and trails. I taught him how to handle guns in return, a fair trade for the both of us.

Since we were on our own, my mind has dramatically warped from what I was worried about to what I needed to worry about in this very moment. I was no longer worried about where I was going to go to Graduate school for Psychology, but where I was going to sleep that night. I was thinking about where to find food, how to kill off the next Walker coming after me, and how I was going to see my parents again.

Were they even alive?

I had the crazy notion in my head that they made it through, they made it and they war hiding somewhere in the Fort Benning area. The same with my siblings, they are waiting for me and hoping that I am alive as well. But I knew reality was harsher than fantasy, that they have to be dead by now and I am the only one left to survive and get through this whole mess.

"You ready to roll out?" Jacob asked me once from his spot near the door. I picked up the gun that on the floor next to the cot I made for myself, cocking it and looking over at him. I saw him shotgun loaded and ready, perched by the door with a hand on the handle. I nodded at him once, walking over to him and seeing him open the door slowly, the both of us looking down the hall and seeing nothing.

So far, so good.


	2. Machete Mayhem

I heard Jacob slam the door shut as I placed both of our bikes in the bed of the truck. As I slammed the bed door shut, Jacob walked over and ruffled his short brown hair. In one hand was the keys to the car, the other was the pistol he was using the day.

"We'll do a drive through Fort Benning before we hit your house. We need to find a gun store and get more ammo, and some medicine." Jacob said aloud as he pulled out the map in the front seat of the car. I fixed my bangs to the side and away from my eyes as I saw where he was drawing the red pen on the map. I saw where he wanted to do, and since I grew up in the area I knew that right place to hit in order to get what we needed.

"The drug store here on Benning Road is good for medicine material. And I know up here on Lumpkin Road there is a Gun Store that has a big variety of bullets." I explained to him as I placed my hands on my hips. I felt the cool morning wind coming through the area, having me look up and notice that it was the fall wind that was making me cringe. It was late October now, close to Halloween and I could see the autumn leaves falling. They still lived while the rest of us suffered.

"Right, let's get to it." Jacob said aloud as he folded up the map. I got in the truck and saw him get in the driver's seat. We drove out from the complex we stayed in for the night, turning onto the highway and down the deserted street. I placed my ankles on the window, having my boots dangle out the window and watch the colorful trees go by. The sun was barely coming through the forest as I looked over to Jacob, seeing him drive.

Jacob was a good 6 foot 4, very tall for his age. He was a big guy too, not big as in fat, but in muscle. His dark brown eyes contrasted his blond hair that was lighter than most blond are that I have seen. His height and size has over shown his warmth that he does have. Since we met when we started working together, I saw him more as a teddy bear than a giant of size and warrior-ness. I was getting to see him as a older brother of him, the kind that I never had growing up.

We arrived at the Drug store, the both of us getting out the truck and having our guns in hand in case of a Walker or two coming our way. I also grabbed my hoodie backpack, throwing it on as we got inside the drug store. It was my favorite item that I kept throughout the whole apocalypse. It was a typical backpack with a hoodie sewn to the top of it, givine me shade when it was shot or cover when it was dark.

As we suspected, it was deserted with not one person in sight. There were signs of looters that came through, since things were distorted around the area both on the floor and on the shelves. It was dark, the only light coming from the windows as we walked towards the back of the store.

"I'll get the drugs from here, why don't you go over to the gunstore. Take the bike, it'll be faster." Jacob said to me as we approached the pharmacy and saw a wide variety of pills there in front of us. I looked over at him for a second, then back out towards the front of the store were our truck was. The gun store was about a half mile away uphill, towards my Grandfather's house. If I were to leave him behind, he would have the truck and the weapons. And me? I was only going to have my bike, one pistol and my backpack to load bullets and other weapons we would find.

"Take the machete too with the holder, in case you run into trouble." Jacob said aloud in a grunt as he hopped over the counter and landed on the other side. I raised my eyebrow at him, seeing him smirk at me.

"What, you don't think I can't take care of myself out there with just one pistol?" I asked him aloud in a coy tone.

"You're fast, but can take on a Walker by yourself?" He asked me as I rearranged my backpack.

"Oh come now, you've seen me in action." I said back to him, knocking on the counter top with my knuckles and pointing to him, "I'll be back in 30 minutes."

"Done. Be careful." he said to me, having me nod my head and walk out the store. As I walked I heard him going through the pills on the counter. Walking to the bed of the truck I saw the sun getting higher in the sky, making it a bit warmer for me to handle. I pulled out my bike: a fixed gear dark blue bike with some dents in it from past injuries I inflicted on myself, thanks to the busyness of New York. I also got out the machete in it's holster and strapped it on my hip, feeling the heaviness of the machete on my right hip sink me down a bit as I got on my bike. Placing my foot on the pedal, I pushed off and flew down the highway.

When I ride my bike, I feel like I could fly fast than ever before. I'm a person who loves to go fast, very fast in fact. It's the reason why I chose to be a bike messenger in the first place: get in and get out. Something about being able to fly down on concrete with only a piece of metal holding you up: its thrilling. Even after every injury that I got on the job: running into taxis pulling out at the last minute or getting hit by a truck that was turning without seeing me. Every injury was worth it, it was to me. It was almost a badge of honor.

I flew up the hill and down the ways, turning a bit here and there until I saw the gun store in my sight. I knew I was going to be there faster than usual, since I was fast at riding than Jacob. I stopped the bike as I got close enough and hopped off with ease. Moving the bike with me, I opened the front door and placed the bike against the wall. I then threw out my machete from its holster and gripped it tightly, looking around me.

The place, like the drug store, was completely dead. There were looter that came through, but mostly got the bigger guns. I immediately went for the bullet section and browsed, seeing a few boxes of what we needed. I pulled off my backpack, unzipped the top and shoved the boxes in quickly. I looked around some more in case someone, or something, was going to sneak up behind me and try to get me. I've seen it happen before, and I was not going to let it happen to me.

Moving on, I saw the smaller pistols and the archery section. Raising a eyebrow, I walked over and placed the machete in its holster on my hip, seeing the nice bows there were on the display. There were at least two left, since the rest were looted. I was not good with bows and arrows, but I knew Jacob was since he was raised in the redneck section of Georgia. Bless him for getting out alive.

I grabbed one bow, and saw at least one full bow of arrows hiding in the corner and I snagged it as well, about to pick them up when I heard a growl behind me. I froze, not moving one step from where I was. I grasped the machete handle with my right hip, feeling the hardwood under my calloused palm and fingers. I was thinking fast in my head: Only one growl. There had to be at least one, maybe two. I can take them out, I've done it before. How was I going to do though? One swipe?

I heard the growl behind louder, it as getting closer. I gripped the handle tighter and I took in a deep breath, feeling the cool air against my open left hand by my jeans. In one swift motion, I shot up from my spot crouching on the floor, raised the machete behind my head and whirled around, swinging the machete and hearing the snapping of a neck, the falling of a body, and the splashing of blood. I felt the blood hit my arm and sleeve of my plaid shirt as the head fell to the floor after the body. The machete in my right hand was still in the air near my neck as I looked at the Walker on the floor, completely gone now. I immediately grabbed the box of arrows, the bow and placed the machete in my holster as I walked over to the bicycle.

This was my typical life now. Kill after kill, looting after looting. I saw nothing changing from this moment on, not until I saw a a car coming towards the gun shop. I froze in my spot, clutching my bike with one hand and the new weapons I looted in the other hand. I never saw another working car since the breakout. This one was a light green car, a nice one, with at least three people inside. Were they here looking for trouble? What if they see me? What would they do to me? I've encountered drifters who were after what we had for their own sake, thankfully Jacob took care of them so I would have to. But I was alone on this one, where was I going to go?

Immediately I looked behind me, backing away from being seen and pushing my bike with me down one of the aisles and into the back room. I got my bike inside, showing my new things with it and peeking out around the corner once more. I heard the car doors opening and closing, making me take in a deep breath once more as I knew they were coming in the same way I did.

They were looking for.

That's when I saw them fully: all three of them. One was a African American man, a slightly big guy who was bald and had the look of determination on his face. He was wielding a shotgun in his hand, standing next to another man. This man was shorter and skinnier, greasy hair swept to the side and a wild look in his eyes. He didn't like he shaved for weeks, wearing dirty clothes that included a leather vest over a cut off blue shirt. He looked like a redneck from the Georgia, that I knew of certain, since he had a crossbow in his hands that was armed and loaded. But the last one, the one man in the middle, was wearing a sherif outfit with a hat to boot.

Oh boy, what was I getting myself into


	3. Home Again

"Right, we need to get what we need and get back to the group." I heard the middle guy, the police man, say aloud. I could tell from his accent that he is from Georgia as well, making me wonder why they were out here. I clutched the pistol I had from my backpack holster and I waited for them to do a something. All I heard was the rustling around of the left over guns and bullets, one of them was looting just like me.

"Woah, look at this poor feller." I said aloud, having me loose breath for a moment and look around the corner one more time. I saw the second guy, the one that was a redneck, crouching down next to the Walker that I decapitated. I saw his head tilted to the side as he examined the dead body.

"Whoever did this knows how to kill them in one swipe. There's no sign of a multiple blow to this poor sap." He said, his thick accent bouncing through the room as I felt a bit of pride of what he said. But then I saw him looking at the blood that was on the floor and his face went from casual to confused.

"This blood is fresh." he said aloud, having me see the police man crouch down next to him and take off his hate. I saw his full face: brown semi curly hair that was short and small green eyes. He looked weathered, as if he's been at this for years.

"Someone was here today already." The police man said aloud, adding onto the redneck's remark. The redneck nodded his head and scratched his neck in frustration.

"Yep, this has to be about a couple of minutes fresh. Blood this fresh doesn't stay for too long out in the open." he explained to the policeman, making me curse to myself as I tried to take a few breaths. I knew they were going to look for that one person that did this. But then what, after that? Were they going to kill me? I kept the pistol close to me as I heard the two of them get up from the crouching position.

"Let's get our stuff and bolt out of here." The third man said from his spot near the register.

"Naw, T-Dog. I wanna find this guy and see were he is. He might be close by." The police man said aloud, his voice was calmer than the two of them as I clutched the side of the wall in case they were coming over to me.

"If he is, what if he doesn't want to be seen by nobody, a drifter?" The first guy asked aloud, and I could tell he just wanted to get what they needed and get out fast.

"And what if this guy knew we were coming and wanted to get us in one go, like this piece of crap here?" The redneck asked aloud, kicking the dead Walker. I held my breath, trying to think of my options. The redneck wanted me dead, the first guy wanted to leave me alone, but the third? What did he want.

"Either way, we should find him. If there's only one person, he might need help and that's why he came here." The police man said aloud. I heard nothing for a moment or two until I heard what sounded like a Walkie Talkie coming from the three of them. The voice was fuzzy and coming in and out.

"Rick! Rick where are you man?" I heard on the walkie. The voice sounded young, around my age or maybe a bit older. I listened in as the police man answered the walkie.

"What's up Glenn?" The police man asked aloud.

"Dude, Lori's been wondering where you went, there's a new drifter that's at the Fort and he wanted to talk to the leader. I don't know, man. This guy looks like trouble." I heard on the walkie. I heard the redneck sigh aloud as they shuffled around in the gun shop.

"I'll get the bullets." The first guys said aloud as he went to the bullet area. The redneck spat on the floor and walked out of the store towards the car.

"Right, stay put Glenn. We're coming back in 5 minutes." The policeman said aloud into the walkie and I heard it go off. He sighed and walked out of the store, the third guy following him. I looked around the corner and saw the policeman look in one last time. From where I was, he couldn't see me since I was in the pitch black part of the store. But I could see him, the look of determination and seriousness on his face. He walked out and got into the car, making me take out a breath of relief and watch as the car drove off back towards Fort Benning. It made sense that they would stay there, that place is a fortress. I knew that place, but very well like my father did when he worked there, but I knew the layout and how it worked.

They were safe there.

I got up slowly from my spot and looked on as they drove down the highway, seeing the car get smaller and smaller. From where I was, they weren't looking for trouble. They just wanted to survive, then again that's what others do before they chop your head off. I stayed at that spot for a moment or two before I heard the walkie talkie I had go off in my backpack. It was a small one we looted from a Radioshack in the city before we ran for good. I opened the pack, going through the stuff and seeing the small walkie at the bottom.

"Katie, where are you?" I heard on the other line. I picked up the walkie, the small device fitting in my hand as I clicked it on.

"I'm here, just got into some trouble." I replied back to him.

"Define trouble." he said to me through the device.

"One walker, and three drifters coming in for the bullets." I replied back to him, hearing him sigh on the other line.

"Are you safe?" He asked me, his voice was getting a bit more concerned.

"I'm fine, Jacob. I took out the Walker with the machete, head cam clear off. But I hid from the three drifters. They are hiding out at Fort Benning." I explained to him on the device. He might wanted to meet up with them, that or stay clear from them. Knowing Jacob, he wants to keep clear until we know we can trust them.

"Noted. Get back to the Drug Store, and we'll head to your place." I heard him explained to me.

"Roger, on my way." I replied back to him, clicking the denied off and clipping it to my jeans loophole. I walked back and grabbed by bike from the back room. Loading up on the bike, I pulled by hair back some more before it was going to get in my face from the ride. Those three drifters were still in the back of my head as I rode back down the road, staying towards the side in case another car came. It would be easy for me to go into the forest and hide out until they passed on.

When I got back to the Drug Store, I saw Jacob coming out with one of our duffle bags, having me see that it looked rather stuff he got. I slowed and stopped near the bed of the truck as he placed the duffle in the bed.

"What did you get?" He asked me as I unloaded the bow and arrows, my backpack and cracked my back in the process.

"4 boxes of bullets for our pistols and a dozen more rounds for my shotgun. Plus this for an emergency." I explained to him,showing him the bow and arrow. He nodded his head as he unzipped the duffle bag for me to see.

"I got some snacks, more pills in case, and bandages, along with water and juice." He explained to me as I looked inside. He was good with portions, this would last us 5 more days at least.

"So, those drifters, what did they want?" he asked me aloud in curiosity as I loaded the bike in the bed of the truck next to his. That was still a thought to me. They could of tried to find me, then kill me and take the stuff in the process. But then again, they wouldn't of been merciful to me.

"I don't know, but I'm glad that they didn't find me." I replied back to him, seeing him nod his head and then freeze in his spot. I saw the same look many time before as I looked near the bed in hopes to find a weapon nearby. There was the machete in the bed of the truck near by hand, and Jacob had his pistol in his holster.

"How many?" I asked him in a low voice, not moving from my spot. If I did move, then the Walker would start coming fast.

"Four." He replied to me, moving his hand slowly to the pistol as I eyed the machete near my hand. I looked from the machete and over to Jacob, seeing him look down at me with determination in his eyes.

"On three." He said aloud, having me nod my head once. If there war four of them, I knew we would have to act fast before anyone else was coming our way. My hand started twitching to get this thing over with, then again I didn't want it happen.

"One." He started, having his hand on his pistol holster as my hand got a bit closer to the machete handle. I grasped it lightly.

"Two." He said again, popping the lid of the holster off silently as I grasped the handle of the machete tightly. I waited for him to give me the green light, and waiting to me was like pure torture.

"Three!" Within two seconds, we both were moving a fast pace. I threw out the machete from the holster as Jacob shot down one of the walkers in one go. I whirled around and aimed high, seeing a Walker in front of me and I threw down the blade onto its head. The walker was still, groaning as I tried to get the blade out of the skull in time for the second one coming my way. I hear another shot from Jacob as he was walking backwards towards the truck. I then heard the click from his pistol, he was empty.

Great.

I grunted as I tried to get the blade out, but it was stuck real tight. I backed away from the fallen Walker, who was wearing my machete like a hat. I looked around me and saw a rake that was propped against the wall of the drug store by the front door. I ran over as I saw Jacob dig out the baseball bat we looted some days before from the bed of the truck. He started swinging at the head of a third walker as I grabbed the handle of the rake, running back. I saw the fourth walker, who was shot on the side of the neck but not the head, coming next to Jacob and about to bite him. I climb on the bed door of the trucked, aimed and rammed the rake into it's skull. The crunching sound of the walker's skull and his groaning fell over the areas as he fell to the floor, along with the walker Jacob smashed with the bat.

It was still then, the two of us standing there and breathing heavily. Jacob's bat was stained red and black, having me see him lower it to the floor and look up at me as I hopped off the bed and pulled out the machete from the Walker's head finally. We both looked at each other and knew he had to get out of there.

A typical Day in our neighborhood.

* * *

"This is it." I said aloud as I saw the front gates of my old home. They were iron black bars, thick and tall. it reminded me of the old haunted house gates in stories. But my grandfather wanted it, making me think of him as Jacob got out of the car and opened the gates. He had to use some force, but since it was Jacob, that was not an issue. The gates swung open slowly and we saw the road leading us up a hill a bit towards the manor. Jacob got back in the car and he started driving it up the hill. Even though it was in fact 12:00, there was serve cloud cover so the sun was not evident. It made the situation more eery.

As we went up the hill I had memories come back to me when I lived here. People thought our house was the haunted house of For Benning: no one wanted to venture there for any reasons. I saw the willow trees that were planted along the road, along with the withering flowers my mother planted in the summer time. The grass was over grown, and the leaves were not racked. If my father was around, me would give my brother lip for not doing his chores.

We pulled up to the house, having me take in a deep break of both relief and worry. It looked exactly the same way as it did before: a white manor with blue window panels and a wrap around porch. The house was 3 stories, including the small attic. There was a separate building for the gardening supplies and garage, and a garden in the back. We were in the deep forest of Fort Benning, so we were surrounded by pine and redwood trees, not being able to be seen by helicopters overhead of us.

Jacob pulled up to the front door and turned off the car, having me get out of the car and look at the house. It looked exactly the same, as if it was never touched by a looter or a herd of Walkers. But that was only the outside, what about the inside? I looked back at Jacob, seeing him walk over and have his shotgun in hand as he handed me mine. We both walked up the porch steps and to the front door. Without thinking, I reached underneath the floor mat in front of the front door, feeling the metal of the house key and pulling it out. I used this whenever I would sneak out at night, I guess this was the best time to use it. I unlocked the front door, Jacob having his shotgun loaded and ready, and pushed the door open.

I was home again.

* * *

**Author note: **Hey guys! I hope you like it so far! Leave me a comment and tell me if I need to fix something or what have you! thanks for reading !


	4. Marshburn Manor

Memories came back to in a flash, memories of being young and running around in this house. Back a that time, I was young and naive, thinking that I was going to rule the world one day. Boy, how silly was I then compared to now. The hallway was dark and still, though I knew now one was in here to begin with. There were the pictures on the wall of myself and my brother growing up, my father when he was young as a Cadet, and my mother when she was in high school.

It was all coming back to me now. I walked in, shotgun loaded as I moved to the right of the hallway into the open living room. The big blue couch with the coffee table was never touched once, not from the look of it. I saw the TV still propped up against the wall and the fireplace, massive and silent with no life inside. I walked through towards the back where the kitchen is. I heard Jacob walking through the sitting room where the piano is, making me think of my eldest brother and how he used to play it on Sunday mornings. I saw myself in the kitchen, seeing the yellow and white in the cabinets and tiles on the walls. The silver appliances were still, glistening from the small soy that was outside the house now. I looked at the refrigerator, seeing the old pictures on there of our family and some notes that my mother made to reminder herself. Her neat handwriting contrasted my father's chicken scratch autograph.

I turned the corner and saw Jacob out of the corner of my eye in the dining room, walking along the big table and our big family picture. We took that a few days before I left for college, the last we took as a family. I was so young ten, though it's been 4 years. I walked to the laundry room in the back, seeing the washing machine and dryer still there and folded sheet my mother must of forgotten to put away. The backdoor was in the laundry room, leading to the backyard. I unlocked the door slowly and opened it, hearing the creak of the thick wooden door opening as the screen door was opened as well.

Out backyard was huge, going into the fresh were the back iron fence bordered our land from the national forest. I saw nothing but green grass, rolling down the hill slightly into the forest trees. Past the trees we had about 50 fifty feet until we reached the gate. Looking both ways I heard a growl nearby and my shotgun went up,r easy for shooting. But this growl was different, much different. It wasn't coming from a human, not to me it was. No, this one was an animal.

Specifically, a dog.

That's when I saw a large dog walking towards me from the forest trees, standing at the clearing that was in the middle between the forest and our house. I knew that dog, for certain I knew who it was. It was a German Shepard, had to be about 6 years old, a female to be exact and I've seen it before.

It was our dog.

"Zelda?" I asked aloud, seeing her ears perk up from the sound of her name. Her tongue came out instantly and I knew it was her. I saw that dog grow since I was 15 years old, playing with her when she was a puppy and seeing my dad train her up to be a good army dog. I smiled in relief and lowered my shotgun as Zelda ran over to me, barking a few times as I crouched down to be in froth f her. She licked my face and I giggled, rubbing the back of her ears. I was beyond glad to see a familiar face, even though it came from a dog.

"What was that?" I heard behind me, seeing Zelda's ear perk up from the sound of Jacob. Jacob opened the screen door and looked down, seeing me scratching Zelda's ears and a smirk was on his face.

"Who's this?" He asked in curiosity. I smiled widely as he crouched down next to me lifted his hand to Zelda. Zelda tilted her own head, sniffing at his hand and then licking it.

"This is Zelda, our dog. She's the one I was telling you about back in the day." I explained to him, seeing him look at me with a raised eyebrow.

"Zelda?"He asked me, making me sigh.

"My mom named her. She's named after Zelda Fitzgerald, F. Scott Fitzgerald's wife. My mom was a literature nut." I explained to him some more, seeing him shake his head in amusement. I looked back at my dog and smiled widely as she had her tongue out and panting with joy.

"How is it that she survived this long, and never left?" I asked aloud, looking behind her at where she could of ran off. It was true, how did she get to be out here for this long and was other killed, or even infected? I knew she was smart, but I didn't think she would make it out here on her own.

"She must of killed for her own food on squirrels and rabbits, and hid in the house from the Walkers that came close by." Jacob explained to me as I looked at her to make sure she wasn't hurt or bit. She looked completely fine to me, I sighed in relief as I got up from my spot, hearing Zelda get up on the porch with Jacob and myself. I looked one more time before looking back at Jacob.

"Let's check upstairs and then get settled." I said to him, seeing him nod his head as he opened the door. Zelda went in first and I followed, thinking of how random it was that Zelda survived on her own and was no in any sort of trouble.

* * *

The rest of the house was empty, with five bedrooms and two bathrooms all in perfect condition. It was as if they house was in a force field bubble and no one was allowed in or out, not Walkers layer a dead finger on the place, nor a drifter. It must of been from the gate in the front of the property that threw them off. I walked through every room, Zelda on my heel as Jacob unloaded the truck and locked the front gate tightly with new chains that we had. The last room that I checked was my old bedroom. The colors of the light green and Gray were still on the walls, along with my white bed with gray bedding and green pillows. My desk was still against the window looking out over the backyard, and my closet had my old clothes inside. Everything was hitting me hard as I walked back down the stairs and saw Jacob unloading the food in the kitchen. From that moment on, I knew we were going to stay in that for as long as we can until a new plan came out. I could see in Jacob's eyes that he was tried from running around, and he needed some rest.

I took a shower in my old bathroom that was attached to my brother's bathroom. It was first shower I had in days, something you tend to forget when you're trying to fight for survival. Jacob went in my parent's room for the shower, and he decided to sleep in my eldest brother's bedroom that was on the other side of the second story. To our pleasure, the electricity was still working so we got to wash our clothes that we've worn for weeks and I got to cook some good food. It was far better than cooking it in a tin pan and praying that we don't run out. Some of the food in the kitchen, mostly in the pantry, was still good for another month. After we ate, the two of us sat out on the porch of the house in the front. Both of our shotguns were laying in our laps as I placed my feet on the railing in front of me, leaning back in the rocking chair. After a fresh shower with my soft hair flowing in the cool crisp wind and wearing my pajamas for the night, I was on cloud nine for a moment or two.

"So, how long do you wanna stay here?" I asked Jacob aloud, seeing him look over at me and then shrug.

"I don't know. I think we should stay at least a month until we know where to go and when we have enough supplies to make it." he explained to me, having me nod my head. I looked down at Zelda, who was laying down with her head between her paws near my rocking chair. She was fast asleep, making me smile as I looked back at Jacob.

"Is it weird, being back here after 4 years?" He asked me, making me pause and think about it. I was glad to be back in a familiar place, where I know what things are where and how to navigate around the house with my eyes closed. But then again, I wanted to leave so bad when I turned 18. Was I right to come back?

"Somewhat." I replied in a shrug, "I mean, I wanted to leave as soon as I could. But now that everyone's gone, I wanted to come back and see what came of this place." There was a pause then between the two of us, making me think to myself again about the drifter than came into the gun shop earlier that day. I hoped that they were okay wherever they were. Even though I was afraid of them, I knew they were trying to survive too.

"So, what about those drifters?" I asked Jacob aloud, seeing him sigh and rub his neck. I could tell this was making him think, whether or not to help those guys.

"I don't know. They said they were at Fort Benning. And we both know that place is hell just to crack into, so they must be safe there." He explained to me, having me bring my feet down from the railing and sit up properly.

"What if we go down there tomorrow, and see what is up with them?" I asked in a suggested tone. I saw him sit up as well with me, "Think about it. We can spy on them and see what they are doing over there. And who knows, we might help each other out in this whole ordeal."

"What if they are dangerous, Katie. The last thing we need now, since we already found shelter, are people who want us killed." Jacob retorted with me.

"One of them is a sheriff." I said to him, seeing his eyes shift from not sure to curiosity, "He sounded like he wanted to find help, or at least give out help. I bet he can help us out, and we can help him." I heard him sigh next to me, making me run my fingers through my red hair.

"Look, all I am saying, is that we should go tomorrow and just spy on them. I'm not saying we should talk to them, only look from a distance and see what they are up to." I explained to him slowly and I could see the wheels turning in his head. I hoped he said yes, I wanted to see what those drifters were up to. Plus, if they needed help, we could help them out in any way possible. I then saw Jacob close his eyes and sigh in defeated, having me smirk as I knew I won this argument.

"Fine, we got tomorrow to Fort Benning."


	5. Atlana and New York Collision

That next day I was sneaking up into the small clearing on a hill over looking Fort Benning. It was late afternoon, and after our conversation at the manor, I knew Jacob wanted to see what they were up to. We left Zelda back at the house, taking only our bikes and locking everything up. I knew our house was going to be safe, no one was going to go there without having to go through the gate.

After hiding the bikes in the forest near us, Jacob and I laid down on the high grassy area right over the top of the hill. Jacob had binoculars and I used one of our sniper rifles that we looted from New York, we hardly used it since the Walkers we encountered were in close range. I felt the heat of the sun on my back, though it was cooler than it would be in the summer. I looked through the scope on the rifle, seeing Jacob place his shotgun next to him on the floor and look through the lenses. I looked through the gates and saw one of the clearings within the Fort. I peered around some more, hoping to find some sort of life in there. At first I saw nothing, but then I saw a few people coming out from one of the buildings.

I saw the three drifters from the gun store, all of them talking together with a female who had long brown hair and a plaid shirt on. Next to her was a young boy, maybe 13 years old who had dark brown hair and was wearing the sheriff's hat on his head. He might be his son, but I was not sure. I looked some more, seeing another woman who had very short grayish hair and was next to the redneck, talking to him and seeing him talk back to her. The last person I saw was a young man, maybe my age. He had black hair that was waved back away from his face and almond eyes. He was talking to the Sheriff, who was looking frustrated as the last man walked over to the group and started talking loudly to them. I could tell he was shouting at them and I knew they were all getting irritated with him.

"He's the new drifter I was telling you about, the one that found them and was pissing them off."I said aloud in a light tone to Jacob. I heard him hmm in agreement.

"It looks like there's only them, and no one else. Why do you think they're there?" he asked me, looking over at me from his spot on my left. I looked back, thinking about the same thing in my head.

"They might be looking for something." I replied back in a shrug. He nodded his head and we both looked back. I went from looking at the group to the surrounding areas. I saw Walkers, plenty of them, walking around the gated fence in the Fort Benning area. I was thankful we were high enough so we won't be seen. I looked back to the group, seeing the new drifter that was hated walk over to the fence and shoot a Walker in the forehead. The gun shot went high in the air and killed the slight calmness in the area. I shook from the sudden sound, but I looked over at Jacob, seeing him look through his binoculars.

"He's a dangerous one, that guy." He said aloud, having me look back through the scope and look at him closely. I saw his youthfulness, having him seem like he was a bit older than me but not by much. But I knew this was going to be trouble for them, because he was young and he thought he could do whatever he wanted. He was hot headed, from what I saw on top of that hill. He was a threat to the group, and I knew they didn't want him there anymore. Not to mention there was a kid there and that made the situation worse.

I saw the sheriff walk over to the guy and thrown down his gun, starting to yell at him for what he did. The woman with the long brown hair ushered the younger boy away from the group and they both walked back into the building. I then saw the redneck looking over in our direction, pointing towards us and the sheriff following his pointing. For one second I thought I saw the sheriff look right at me, through the scope, and into my eyes. Jacob and I slammed to the floor within a second, guns to the floor and staying very still.

"What the hell? How did they find us?" I asked in a harsh whisper, staying very still and see Jacob through the high grass. He looked just as scared as me, shaking his heads slowly.

"It was the reflection of your bracelet." He hissed at me, having me look down at my skinny wrist and the silver bracelet that I was wearing. It was my mothers, something she would wear around the house. I wore it last night and forgot to take it off this morning. I cursed under my breath and closed my eyes.

"I'm sorry, I forgot to take it off." I replied to him.

"It's okay, I don't think they saw us. Stay down and I'll check." Jacob said aloud, looking forward through the grass as I stayed with my ear to the earthly floor. I saw how he perched the tips of his fingers on the ground and looked through the grass with intensity. I waited, being very still.

"No, they didn't see. They're talking again. Let's get out of here before they look back here again." Jacob explained to me and I nodded my head. I grabbed the rifle in one hand and slowly inched our way backwards down the hill, still staying to the floor and not making anymore noise then we should. We had to get away in case they were looking for us, and if they found us we were going to be in trouble. I knew we had to be careful from this point on, since they were going to be surrounded by those Walkers and none of them were going to leave.

Not for awhile.

Jacob and I got on our bikes and loaded up our guns on shoulders, having me hear thunder coming through the area and the wind coming in too. There was a storm coming as I got my foot on the pedal.

"Let's get back to the house before we get caught in the storm." Jacob said aloud as we started riding down the hill towards the highway. I pedaled behind him as the thunder got louder and bigger, having me worry that we were going to be in big trouble with the rain coming down on us. The harder we pedaled, the more we were trying to stay alive in the weather.

As I turned the corner behind Jacob, I saw a Walker come out of nowhere and try to make a grab for me. I swerved to the right, away from him as he barely missed me. I pedaled faster and harder as I saw Jacob look behind me. His eyes went wide, knowing that we were going to get in deeper trouble.

"Bolt it!" He said aloud as I saw two more Walkers join him, following us. I then knew that if they didn't loose their sight fast enough, they would track us down to the house. We had to go faster, and our sent will be gone when the rain comes down and hides it from us. We were about one mile away from the house and that last mile was a make or break for us. I never pedaled so hard before in my life, not until then.

When we made it to the gate, Jacob started unloading the gate as I took out the rifle from over my shoulder and aimed it in front of me, looking around for any Walker that followed us. It was sprinkling by then, having me feel my clothes being club to my body and my hair sticking to my face. I saw nothing, thankfully. It made me realize that we did loose those Walkers, right at the knick of time.

"Let's move." I heard Jacob say to me as he swung open the gates. I threw my rifle strap back over my shoulder and got through the gate, seeing him close and lock it. When he got he secure. we both rode up the hill as the rain got worse. The smell of rain and smoke came through the area as we got the bikes to the porch and parked them. I got us inside, being greeted by Zelda and seeing her wag her tail at the sight of us. I rubbed her head as Jacob placed our guns by the front door and locked the doors, rubbing his wet head and stripping off his jacket to hang it on the fireplace protector. I walked over to the living room window, seeing the gray fog rolling in over the area in front of the house and the rain pouring now. Jacob was lighting a fire and I looked back at him.

"Is that a good idea?" I asked him aloud, "What if they see it?"

"They'll think it's smoke from the mountain and the rain. I doubt they'll think its a fire." Jacob said to me, having me nod my head at him. I knew he was thinking ahead, but I was more cautious when it came to these things. The room was filled with warmth and a orange glow as I saw Jacob move to the drapes in the living room, pulling them shut so we won't be seen. But I looked back in front of us, peeking through the curtains and seeing the front gates. At that moment I was thinking that we might get another Walker coming to the front gate and seeing if they can get through.

I prayed that it wasn't the case.

* * *

I woke up the next morning, seeing that it was still gray outside and the rain was still pouring. I rubbed my eyes, seeing that I was in my PJs in my old bed, not wanting to get up at all. But I knew it had to be something since I was never one to stay in bed for that long., But the fact that I was never in a real bed for what seems like month, this bed felt like it was made by the hand of God.

Heavenly.

I got up and rubbed my red hair in between my fingers, yawning and walking out my door and hearing the rain hitting the roof. The house was dim, very dim since it was only the light outside that was giving light into the house. I walked down the stairs and saw Zelda fast asleep in her bed by the front door. I walked all the way and saw over to my right Jacob in the dinning room, looking out the window. He was in his own PJ's: a gray v neck shirt and long PJ pants. I walked over with him and saw that he was looking at something particular out the window. I stood next to him and had a raised eyebrow at him.

"What is it?" I asked him aloud, seeing him look over at me. His face was grave, something did go wrong and I was no scared for what he was about to say. But he said nothing, looking forward once more and nodded his head towards the front gate. I looked in his direction, past the fog and down the slanted hill to the tall front gates. I can see it clearly, but at first it was hard because of the hard rain. But I the saw what he saw: Three of the people from Fort Benning.

They are at our house.

"How did they find us?" I asked him aloud with shock.

"It beats me. They might be sniffing around for supplies and they cam across our house." Jacob replied, having me look from the three out there to him with seriousness in my eyes. I was now scared of these people, not knowing what they are capable of. I looked back out there and I saw who they were: The sheriff, the redneck, and the young boy who was my age that looked Asian from where I was standing. They all were looking through the gates, looking very wet and like they were curious as to who was up in the house. Something clicked inside of me, something that reminded my of my grandfather. Knowing him, he would let them in and help them in any way possible. Who was I not to let them all. We could get to know them and then let them go if they were too much for us. After all, I was different from when I was 18, I had a heart.

"I'm going out there." I said aloud to him walking over to the closet and getting out the black raincoat my father had. Jacob walked over to me, concern was all over his face.

"What are you talking about?" He asked me as I got the jacket on me.

"I am going out there and seeing if they need help. They are obviously looking for supplies, if not help of some sort." I explained to him, seeing anger in his face as I was talking to him.

"You don't know who these people are, neither do I. And we don't know if they are going to kill you once you let them in." he said back to me in contrast. I sighed, knowing that this was going to be a fight with him.

"But what if they need help?" I asked him in return, hearing him scoff and shake his head.

"This is too risky Katie." he said to me in a low tone.

"Life is a risk, Jacob. They are in the same boat as us: survival. We are all int his together if you think about it, and the last thing I want to do is turn them away and hand them over to the Walkers coming in and out of here. It will be on my conscience if we turn them away, and that's not what I want when this is the end of the world." I said to him aloud in a stronger tone. He was silent then, for a moment or two before he sighed and rubbed his eyes.

"What if they try to hurt you out there?" he asked me, "Maybe I should go with you."

"No." I replied, seeing him about to grab his own gun and I placed my hand on top of his, seeing his eyes go wide with confusion, "I can handle the three of them. I'll take my gun with me in case they have any ideas. If we both go together they'll freak out." Jacob looked out the front door window once more and then back at me, having me try to read him some more and figure out what was going on in his head. If we were going to see what they wanted.

We had to do it my way.

I walked down the front walkway, having my shotgun in both hands and loaded in case something was going to happen. I had my black raincoat on, along with my skinny jeans and boots with my hair in a french braid. Walking down step by step I knew I was going towards what could be my death. These guys might kill me, then go to Jacob, and then take the house. But something inside of me told me that I had to protect the house for all its worth. It belonged to my family, and I was going to keep it that way.

I got close enough to see their faces, all three of them. They saw the shogun in my hand, and all three of them took a step back. I threw it in front of me, aiming right for the sheriff in the middle of the three of them and stood in front of the gate. The gate was the only thing holding us apart from each other, that and the fact that they were taking a big chance by coming to the house. I was taking a risk too, letting them come up this close to me and not killing them myself. Damn me for having a heart. There we stood, in the pouring rain, and I was ready to hit them in one blow as I spoke up first:

"What do you want at my house?"

* * *

**Author's Note: **I hope you guys like the story so far! Please leave me a review and tell me how it's looking! Also spread this on to your friends and let it get out there! Thanks again for reading and for the support!


	6. Who's Hungry

They paused, not saying anything for a moment or two before the sheriff found his voice, though the sound of the rain was getting rather heavy. I stayed still, my rifle barrel still on the sheriff and not moving one inch or two. I felt the bang in my hair sticking to my forehead as I didn't blink, the crackling of thunder coming over us and closer to the area.

"We're looking for shelter for the day, until we can get back to our group." The sheriff replied, his Georgia accent coming through the sound of the rain. I eyed him from my spot.

"You can't get back from here?" I asked him aloud in curiosity.

"Not in this weather, ma'am." He replied to me, having me raise my eyebrow at him for calling me Ma'am. I was always called miss, but never Ma'am. They might try to butter me up in this situation, since I did have a house that was warm and they had a old jail.

"How do I know that you won't kill me as soon as I let you inside?" I asked him aloud, my voice a big bigger since I was trying to talk over the loud rain and the thunder coming closer. I saw him look down at himself, having me look and see that he had absolutely no weapon on him. BUt I saw the redneck and the third, young Asian, both have a gun in hand.

"We're not looking for trouble." He said aloud, looking back at me.

"Not looking, but wanting to cause some?" I asked him in a coy tone.

"Look, all we want is a place to stay until this storm clears. We won't do anything here, all we need a roof over our head and to get some food for the way back. I understand you're worried about us coming into your home, but you can trust us." The sheriff said aloud to me, having me pause as I still had the run aimed at his chest. He was right, I was worried about them being in my house. But then again, I knew they were in a rut and they needed some shelter. If I was in their position, would they do the same for me?

"What's your name?" I asked him aloud, hearing another crackle of thunder and the temperature going down a bit more than before.

"Rick Grimes. This is Daryl and Glenn." He said, pointing to the Redneck and then the young man. I eyed the redneck first, seeing Daryl was a proper name for him. But Glenn, that was a good name for the young Asian man. He was quiet the whole time, never leaving his eyes off of me. However I was never one to catch those type of things, so that was surprising to se him look at me with softer eyes than both Rick and Daryl. I shook that thought from my head, looking back at Rick and seeing him raise his hands to show that he wasn't going to do anything to me.

"You take three steps back, don't move your hands." I said to them, and all three of them did what I told them to. As soon as they were far enough back, I opened the gate slowly and let it open towards them. They didn't rush in like I thought they would, they stood still. It must of been since I was still aiming the shotgun at them. I turned around and locked the gate once more and then looked back at them. They still were not moving from their spots. I was liking them so far. So I lowered the shotgun and had to rest on my shoulder.

"Follow me, and hurry up. The storm's about to be right over us." I explained to him, the thunder crack was the loudest yet as soon as I spoke. The four of us starting walking up the hill, and I heard them walking behind me. As we walked I was thinking about what I just did. For someone like Jacob, it was pure crazy, almost suicidal. But for someone like me, who knew what it was like to be rejected, I knew I was doing the right thing. To me, it was something I knew my grandfather wanted me to do.

As we approached the front door, they stood behind me as I placed my shotgun down next to my side and turned around to face them.

"Once we get inside, you'll give up your weapons to my friend Jacob, He won't take them, he'll hold onto them for you until you leave when the storm is done. Okay?" I asked him, my voice sounding a bit demanding as they all looked at each other. For some reason, my eyes went to Glenn, who was first to nod his head. Something about him and being so quiet was quite interesting to me, having me look away from him to Daryl and Rick, who both nodded their heads as well. I turned about tot he front door and opened it slowly, walking and seeing the three of them walk in as well.

The house was already lit up with some of the electricity, making me thankful that my mother had solar panels places on the house before the whole outbreak happened. Jacob was sitting on the first step of the stairs, Zelda next to him sitting very still as I saw the three of them look at Jacob and Zelda. it was as if they were about to go into a showdown. Jacob had his shotgun resting against his kneecap and had his hands folded in front of him, elbows resting on his knees.

"Weapons in the closet." He said aloud to the three of them, having me look over at them and seeing them look at the closet to their left. I opened the door, seeing Daryl take the crossbow and placing it gently on the floor in the closet. Glenn placed his gun in the closet too, having me kick the door shut and walk over to the three of them.

"You guys hungry?" I asked them, placing my hands on my hips and seeing them look at each other like it was a 180 degree question. It was Glenn that spoke up first.

"A bit." He replied, his voice was soothing and soft compared to the sheriff's voice and Daryl's. I smiled at them, the first time since we met.

"I can make you guys soup and sandwiches." I offered them, seeing them all look at bit more at ease with the situation. I walked over to the kitchen and they followed, thinking that they had nothing else to do. Jacob was last, locking the door and going off on his own to the second story. When we got to the kitchen, I turned back around to face them.

"If you don't mind me asking, is this your house?" Daryl asked aloud from his spot next to Rick.

"Yep, born and raised here." I replied back to him, looking around to see where the pans were again. I got one big pot out and placed it on the stove, getting into the pantry.

"And were you here when the break happened?" Rick asked me as I got the stove to turn on.

"Nope, I was in New York City when it happened. We just got here within three days ago." I explained to them, sitting up on the counter once more.

"We've been at the Fort for about two months at this point." Rick explained to me as I got out glasses, "You're the first survivor that we've seen since we left a farm that we were at some time ago." The fact that they made it this far throughout the whole apocalypse.

"What brought you to Fort Beninng?" I asked them in curiosity.

"That's a bit of a story." Rick replied back to me, having me pause for a moment and stare at him. Then I knew it wasn't my place to pry in their life, since we just met and I rubbed my hand on my jeans, trying to get the dirt off my hands and I held it out to them.

"I'm Katie Mashburn." I said to them, holding it to Rick and seeing him look at my hand for a moment. He then shook it and I smiled at him.

"I realized I never properly introduced myself to you when I had you at gunpoint out there. My father taught me manners and who am I not to show them?" I said aloud to him as he shook my hand and released it. He smirked at me.

"Nothing says proper like a shotgun in your face." He said in a joking tone and I sighed, rubbing the back of my head.

"Like I said, I am sorry about how I acted in front of you lot. It's just that we've had drifters who waned to loot us and lave us for dead before, so you can never be safe anymore." I explained to him and seeing Daryl nod his head in a agreement with me.

"I hear that." He replied to me, having me see him smile for the first time since I saw him in the gun store. I then saw him look behind me and I looked as well, seeing my machete propped up against the awl near the backdoor. I looked from the machete and to Daryl, seeing him point to the weapon and with the look like something clicked in his head.

"It was you in the gun store, wasn't it?" he asked me, a look of surprise on his face instead of anger, something I thought he would have. I gave a nervous laugh and shrugged from my spot.

"I knew that kill with the Walker was too clean for anything else but a machete." he said to me in a grin, almost like it was a hoot and a holler. I grinned in my spot, seeing Rick look surprised as well from the new discovery.

"You were the one that chopped the Walker's head off?" I heard next to them, seeing it came from Glen. I looked at him with some shock to my face, since it was the first time he spoke to me since he came into the house. In fact, it was first time he spoke to me. Ever.

"Yeah." I replied in a light tone. He gave one laugh, it was so light that it made me grin from the sound of it.

"That was actually really cool…the kill I mean." He replied to me, his voice was in fact lighter than both Rick and Daryl. Daryl looked at him with a raised eyebrow and Rick folding his arms in front of him.

"Well…thank you." I replied to him, feeling a bit proud from the kill I did and that he liked it. I was glad he spoke up for the first time, since he seemed so softer and innocent compared to the other two. It made me glad that he was around.

Even though I just met the guy.


	7. I'm Fast

After the three of them ate the soup and sandwiches that I made for them, I got them some of my father's old clothes, and for Glenn my eldest brother's clothes and I washed their clothes for them. I could tell Jacob was getting annoyed by the whole situation, but I knew he was trying to keep a good face on for my sake. It was getting late that night as I stood against the window of the study room, seeing the rain owing down harder than ever and the thunder rolling through what seemed like all of Georgia. I heard Jacob striking up conversation with Daryl and Rick about past Walkers he killed, and how the both of us got out of New York in one piece. That made me happy that he was getting to know the two of them.

Zelda was gnawing on one of the bones I got her from the back room of the house. Hearing her gnaw the bone made me looking down at her and smirk. I was glad to have one other member of the family with me throughout this whole ordeal. Hearing the sound of the rain outside of the house made me close my eyes once again thinking back to when I was young, very young.

* * *

_"You hear that sweetie?" My mother asked me as she held me on her hip and pointing out the window. I was maybe 8 years old and seeing the light rain outside the house on a Sunday afternoon. My hair was very long and semi wavy, tickling my face as I saw my nothing pointing to the rain._

_"It sounds pretty." I remember saying to her aloud, and seeing her smile at me. Her smile made me think of all of the innocence in the world, everything good and nothing of pure evil._

_"It's my favorite noise in the whole world. That, and when you giggle." she said to me, tickling my sides and making me giggle aloud in the study. _

* * *

I heard the floor squeak behind me and I looked, getting out of my memory lane episode and seeing Glenn at the foot of the entry to the study. He looked like he was caught with his hand in the cookie jar. I was quiet for a moment or two before I saw him trying to defend himself.

"I'm sorry, I didn't think you would be in here." He said to me in almost a stammer, having me stand up completely and see Zelda turn her head to look at Glenn as well.

"It's fine, really." I replied back to him in a light tone, seeing him get quiet for a moment or two before looking at the books on the wall near the entry way.

"I was just looking at your books, you have a lot of them." He said in a matter-of-fact tone of voice. I smiled widely at his remark, seeing how he was trying to have a conversation with me yet he sounded like he was in Jr. high and trying to flirt with a girl.

"That I do. Sad to say I'm not a big reader. I'm more of a biker than reader. My mother was the reader." I explained to him, seeing him nod his head as I walked over to where he was. He was looking over at the spines of the books as I looked for one particular book. Out of the corner of my eye I saw him follow me with his eyes as I took out a book from the shelf.

"This one was her favorite." I explained to him, seeing him look at the cover of the book next to me.

"_Great Gatsby._" He said aloud next to me and a small smile on his face, "To be honest, I never really liked this book in school."

"Eh, you and me both. But my mother loved it." I replied to him in a smirk as I placed the book back on the shelf. There was silence between us once more and I shoved my hands in my pockets, seeing Glenn walking into the room some more and look around at the things in the study room.

"So, you know a whole lot about Fort Benning, where things are in there I mean?" Glenn asked me aloud, making me shrug from my spot.

"I haven't been to the place since I was around 15 with my mom, though I the doubt has changed since then layout wise." I replied to him, seeing him nod his head. He probably wanted information about the place that could help them.

"How long have you guys been together?" I asked him, seeing him look away from me and to the three of the guys talking in the living room.

"For awhile now actually. I met up with Rick in Atlanta and Daryl came after." Glenn explained to me as I walked over to the window again and leaning against it, still looking over at him and seeing him shove his own hands in his pockets.

"And you've guys stayed together this whole time?" I asked him aloud, seeing him nod his head with a small smile on his face.

"Mostly yeah. We lost some people along the way, and we almost get the whole group a few times. But mostly we stayed together and we are trying to stay alive in this whole mess." Glenn replied to me. I nodded my head to this. He then pointed out of the room to the direction of the three other guys.

"Has it always been you two, together?" he asked me aloud, making me thinking about what it meant by that.

"Yeah, just the two of us." I replied back to him, seeing him get more interested in the conversation.

"So are you guys…." He trailed off, trying to find the words to say. I then realized what he was trying to say, and I gave a nervous laugh and shook my head.

"No, no no. No we're….not together. No." I replied to him aloud and seeing him give me a nervous laugh in return. I was embarrassed that he asked the, but then again I was glad he did since I never thought of the pair of us traveling together would bring raised eyebrows and confusing questions.

"I'm sorry for asking that, that's your business and it's private." He said aloud, stammering through his sentence and I could see he still bought Jacob and I were a item.

"Honestly, we're not together." I reassured him, seeing him look at me and seeing that I was telling the truth, "We've known each other for years and worked together. I see him more like my big brother than anything else."

"Oh." He replied aloud, making me laugh form my spot.

"Are you this skiddish around everyone new you met?" I asked him in a honest tone and seeing him look at me like a deer in the headlights.

"No, not really." He replied to me in a honest tone and scratched his black hair in his fingertips, "I'm not a great conversation person when it comes to talking to women." He said to me. I could see that when he would talk to me, since his face never did scream out danger at all.

"Who else is with you three?" I asked him in curiosity.

"Well, there's Rick's wife and son. Then T-Dog, Carol, and Thomas. Thomas just came into our group a couple of days ago." He explained to me, making me think of the new guy that they hated, or maybe was agitating to them.

"That's a pretty big group to roam around with. Jacob and I only see couple running around, 3 at the most." I said to him. But he looked so serious when he said the next thing to me.

"Rick wants us to stick together. I think it's better for since we can all bring something to the table." He explained to me, looking down at the floor from his spot, "Rick is the leader, obviously. And Daryl knows how to track, not to mention shoot…"

"What do you bring?" I asked him in curiosity. He looked at me from his spot, a bit surprised from the question I gave him. He made it sound like he didn't have anything to bring to the group, front he way he was standing to who he was explaining it. Even in his body language he was surprised and what I was asking him. He paused for a moment, then replying to me.

"I was a delivery boy before this whole thing happened, pizza delivery.." He said to me aloud, having me smile at his explanation, "I knew how to get in and out of a situation."

"Sounds like you're valuable." I replied to him, seeing him nod his head.

"At first I didn't think so, but I knew Rick and the others value me being with them." He said to me, making me think that he truly cared about this group that he was with, "I mean, I have one thing above the rest of them."

"And what would that be," I asked him aloud. He smirked from his spot, looking away from me and then answering my question.

"I'm fast." he replied to me and I smiled widely at him.

I knew this was the beginning of a beautiful relationship between us.


	8. Deal?

"Lori, I'm telling you we are fine. I promise nothing happened." I heard Rick say into the walkie he was holding in his hand. I looked over from my spot in the kitchen, seeing Rick pacing back and forth in the living room. It was early the next morning and it was still stormy out in the Georgia area. The fog was rolling in and making it thicker, cutting through the forest and through the area.

That morning I realized we were running low on food, something I knew I had to deal with in the near future. But I knew a supermarket near by that we could get to, in and out. The only problem, the drifters in the house. Jacob and I got to know them, but would we trust them to stay behind at our house. I had to think of a plan soon.

"Her name is Katie." Rick said aloud, having me snap back to reality.

_"Are you sure we can trust them?" _I heard on the other end,the female voice cutting through the silence of the morning as Rick looked over at me. I immediately left his line of sight and walked over to the sink, pouring out the last bit of my coffee and rubbing my hair. I knew this was coming, the drifters thinking that I wasn't trusting enough. But then again it still hurt, knowing that even though I gave up my home to them, they still didn't trust.

"Don't mind Lori." I heard next to me and I saw it was Glenn with messy bed hair and a small smile on his face. He walked in with his clean clothes with no socks, his bare feet making the soft sounds on the hardwood floor, "She's always paranoid about something to do with Rick."

"That and Carl." I heard another voice, seeing it was Daryl walking in with Jacob and they both grabbed a cup of coffee from the cupboard.

"Carl?" I asked them aloud.

"Rick and Lori's son. She's a piece of work, that Lori." Daryl said in a low tone, having us all look at Rick who was still on the walkie talkie. I then looked back at Daryl, seeing him look back at me with a softer look on his face.

"Thanks again, for doing this for us." He said in a grunt, having me see that compliments were never his stand point. I smiled and shrugged.

"Might as well do some good in this world." I replied back to him, seeing him nod his head in agreement. I then saw Jacob look at Daryl, then back at me, making me think that something was going on.

"What?" I asked him aloud, seeing him shift in his spot, "I know that look on your face. You have a plan of some sort."

"Actually, Daryl and I do." Jacob said aloud, having me be surprised in my spot. They both have a plan? And since when did they have a plan? I hopped onto the counter top to sit on it, crossing my arms in front of me.

"I'm listening." I replied aloud, seeing Jacob smile at me and walk over to stand in front of me.

"Look, Daryl and I notice we are running out of food. And it will be a matter of time before we are out of food and we'll starve in this place. And You know the place very well. Daryl and I there thinking...going out to find food for the house and maybe get some other stuff. Anything we can find. Plus, Daryl and them can help us, so bigger numbers going into town." Jacob explained to me, having me look at him with surprise. I never took Jacob as one to work well with others, not with what happened with place alliances with drifters. But he seemed convinced about it.

"So, you wanna go into town and Daryl and Rick and Glenn can help us?" I asked, trying to make sure I got the story right on point. Jacob nodded his head, but then I knew there was a catch to it.

"And in return, I offered them a place at our home, all of them." He said to me, having my eyes go wide as I heard what he just told me, He wanted all of their group to stay our home, as our guests and friends. I didn't think this far ahead, let alone this soon. But then again, it would be nice to have extra hands around the house and some people to talk to. I drew my legs up against my chest and wrapped my arms around them, trying to think this through. I felt him place his hands on my legs, as if he was trying to sooth me.

"I know this is a bit much for you, and so far I think it is too. But think about it, they can help us and we can help them." He reassured me, having me think some more about it.

"But what if something goes wrong?" I asked him aloud, seeing him confused for one second but then realizing what I meant. Before he could even answer my question, I saw Glenn step in next to Jacob and look at me square in the eyes.

"I know Rick, and he won't do anything to jeopardize you or Jacob when it comes to safety. You guys are giving us your home, and I know he will want us to respect that gift." He said to me, his voice was strong and sure, "But this is your home, it's your rules. We will respect that, all we ask is a roof over our heads."

I looked from them to Rick, seeing him with the walkie to his ear and then looking over at me. I saw the leader in him, and how scared he was. He was trying to protect them all, and I respected him for that. Glenn was right, he wouldn't take away that trust that we were going to have together. I looked back at Jacob, seeing him nod his head at me.

"Okay, but I'm coming with you." I said aloud, seeing a big grin on his face and a small one on Daryl's face. I looked over at Glenn, seeing him nod once at me with his sincere smile. There was a new plan for us to follow.

One step at a time.

* * *

The rain stopped then, but the fog was very thick. It left a bitter cold to the air as I stood on the bed of the truck, shotgun in hand and Daryl next to me and Glenn on my other side. Jacob was driving the truck and Rick was in the passenger seat, Zelda being in the backseat of the truck laying down. I had on one of my heavier army coats, boots, and my hair french braided back and away from my green eyes, making me sure that I was going to have my eyes peeled the whole time. We took two duffel bags for food and other supplies. The plan was simple: navigate through the fog to the supermarket and get food, and get out in one piece.

It sounded simple.

Daryl had his crossbow and was looking at it one more time as Jacob turned left onto another street. Glenn had a pistol in hand, but he kept it to his side next to his left leg. My shotgun was propped against the bed of the truck as I clutched the top top of the truck with both hands. I looked over at Glenn once, seeing him wear a old baseball hat and having a look of seriousness on his face as well as my own. Somehow, looking at Glenn made me feel a bit safer than before, and I had no idea why that was.

I heard Jacob banging on the ceiling, signaling me we were close. The three of us in the bed of the truck instantly ducked and hid behind the window of the truck as Jacob slowed the car down and turned into a parking area. The whole place had several car, all with the doors out and abandoned/ I felt the eerie feeling hanging in the air as we parked the car right in front of the store. I looked over the roof of the truck, seeing the closed doors of the supermarket and darkness inside. Daryl popped up, aiming his crossbow and examining the area. I did the same behind the trucks and Glenn to the right side. Jacob and Rick got out, letting Zelda out and having me look down at me. She sniffed the floor and we all hopped off the truck to the front doors. As I guarded the group, Rick and Daryl got the door to open.

Inside it was completely dead, the only light coming from the light outside. We all walked in, having me see Zelda sniffing down some of the hallways and Daryl going towards one aisle with a duffel bag strap over his shoulder. I had the other bang, holding the shotgun with one hand and the bag in another.

"Start gathering things, and make it quick." I heard Rick say aloud and we all went in separate directions. Glenn came with me, Rick with Jacob and Daryl was on his own. Glenn and I went down to the pasta section, grabbing boxes of pasta and beans, then getting some bread and soup.

"Must you be picky at a time like this." Glenn asked me as I grabbed some peanut butter and then some jelly. I looked back at him with a raised eyebrow,

"If we are going to try to survive, at least have some taste in what you eat." I said to him as we moved to another aisle in the store.

"I just never took you as someone who was picky at what she ate." Glenn said to me aloud in a amusing tone.

"I'm not." I replied to him, seeing him look at me with confusion, "But having spaghetti and only spaghetti for about 5 days in a row, you want to have options at the end of the world." I looked back at him and saw him smirk at me. At least he got my own sense of humor. I lowered the bag onto the floor and we both squatted down to open it, seeing what we have so far.

"This can hold us for about a couple of week, if we prepare it right." I explained to him aloud.

"Not a problem. Carol knows how to handle food and so does Lori. They can totally help with this." He said to me aloud, having me look up at him and see him smile at him. Something about this new deal between our two groups was still uneasy with me, but I didn't know what.

"Do you think this whole, deal, is a good idea?" I asked him in wonder. He thought about it for a moment or two before answering me.

"The way I see it, we can help each other out in this whole hell hole. And I understand if you don't trust me, because we're new to each other and that last thing you want is us killing you off." He explained to me, having me keep my stare at him, "But I know Rick is a good guy. Sure he may make stupid decisions, but it's like I said: he wants to protect us all and make sure we all make it out alive. And if you are willing to give us shelter, he'll give you safety and protection."

Before he could answer me, I heard a low growl coming from Zelda coming from in front of us. We both looked over and saw her standing in the middle of the aisle, facing the front of the store and away from us. She was growing louder by the second, making me worry what was going on. She must of smelled something wrong.

Very wrong.

"Zelda?" I asked aloud, hearing her growl still going strong. I saw Glenn get up from his crouching position and I saw his face go white, shocked and scared at the same time as he looked at the froth of the store.

"Holy hell." I looked at him with shock, getting up and seeing what he was looking at. I then saw what made him go into shock, making my heart drop and my head spin.

15 Walkers outside our truck, coming our way.


	9. Don't Think Like That

"How are we going to get out of here if they are all in the front?" I heard Daryl ask aloud from his spot on the other side of the mart. I looked over at Rick, seeing him four aisles down and getting his gun ready. I looked back in front of us, seeing them all pass the truck and come towards the front doors. Zelda started barking at the Walkers, her bark echoing in the aisles

"Lock the doors!" I heard Jacob yell aloud and I saw Daryl run up to the front, getting the door locked just in time before the Walkers started banging on the glass windows. I looked behind me and saw the back double doors to the loading dock and the inventory area of the store. We had to think of a plan and a quick before the store would be overrun. I then had a thought, moving away from Glenn and ran down to the back double doors and opened them. Inside was a larger room, with boxes everywhere that were both opened and unopened, having me look around and see a ladder going up to the rooftop. I knew that the backdoor will be swarmed in no time, but the roof, that was a thought. I ran back to Glenn and I saw him look at me with some confusion in his eyes.

"I know how we can get out of here." I said to him aloud, seeing Jacob and Rick walk over to the two of us.

"How?" He asked me, having us hear the banging on the door and the Walkers getting restless.

"There's a ladder that leads to the roof of the store. We take that up and hop down onto the truck." I explained to him, seeing Rick and Jacob listen in on the conversation. I saw Rick look away from me to the front of the store, and then I could see that he was trying to figure out the right plan.

"Sounds like a good plan to me." Jacob said aloud in a shrug, having me see Rick look back at me, "I mean, it sounds like a Evil Kanevil move, but none the less a good one."

"And from there Jacob and hop into the truck and get it started, getting us out of there." Glenn added onto my plan.

"We have nothing to loose at this point." Rick replied aloud in a grunt and I smiled, thinking that I scored some points with him because of this plan. We all started to walk back to the door until I stopped in my spot.

"What about Zelda?" I asked Jacob aloud, seeing him look back at Zelda who was following us, I knew she wouldn't make the jump from the roof onto the bed of the truck and be safe. That was the one thing I didn't think about.

"We'll swing around the back and get her from there." Glenn explained to me, having me stare at Zelda and worry about her.

"Hey." Glenn said to me, grabbing my arm and having me look back at him. I saw that he was serious about what he just said to me. I knew he wasn't going to say something to sugar coat the situation, and I just met the guy.

"We'll come and get her" He said to me in a simple yet strong tone. I nodded my head at him, seeing him nod at me once and we all started heading to the back. Zelda started following us, making me hold my hand out to her.

"Zelda, _bleiben Sie hier" _I said to her, seeing her stop in her spot and Rick look over at Daryl.

"Daryl, let's go!" He yelled aloud, Daryl running after us as we all got to the back room. I walked over to the ladder and looked up, seeing it go into a tube and a trap door. I hooked the shogun strap across my chest and placed my hands on the handlebars, going up step by step and seeing myself go into darkness. The higher I climbed, the darker it was getting. I reached up to see the trapdoor, knowing that I was close enough. I felt the cool metal door above me, making me lean back against the wall of the tube to pro myself up and take the shotgun off my strap. Aiming at the bottom of the gun, I rammed it into the door, up and above my head and hearing the metal clashing over and over again. On the third hit, I felt something cold and hard hit my head, making me squint in pain and feel the blood on my head. I pushed the trap door open, seeing the light hit me in a split second and making me shield my eyes. After a few seconds I walked up through the door and onto the roof.

"I immediately threw the shotgun down on the rooftop surface and walked over to the edge where the truck was. Peering over I saw the parked truck, and the rest of the Walkers hitting the front doors over and over again. Quietly, I walked back to the trap door and peered down, seeing the faces below.

"Come up." I replied aloud, going back to the front of the store and trying to see where we can hop down to get to the truck. I saw a smaller ledge next to the top of the truck, making it a easier jump instead of taking a risk and breaking your legs.

"How does it look." I heard behind me, seeing Rick walk over to me and I looked back at him over my shoulder. His eyes went from my eyes to my head.

"What happened there?" He asked me, pointing to my forehead as I reached up. I felt a pool of blood on my cool forehead and I wiped some of it off on my plaid shirt sleeve.

"The trap door gave this, stupid lock." I replied in a grunt as I saw the rest of the group come over on the rooftop.

"So, what's the next plan of attack?" Glenn asked aloud to the group. I pointed to the front of the store, up and over showing the ledge.

"There's a ledge that's a bit low, but it's easier to get onto the truck roof than jumping from here and breaking a limb." I explained to him, the whole group walking over and seeing the ledge. The Walkers still were not looking up, making me look back at Daryl and see him take out his crossbow from his back strap. He hook it up, going over the edge and aiming.

"If we can get some of these guys away from the truck and get one of us inside, then we can get in no problem." Daryl said aloud, shooting one Walker in the head and seeing him fall. I think Jacob got the idea too, walking over to the edge and hopping onto the lower ledge, walking over slowly. I grabbed the shotgun from the rooftop surface and aimed it over the edge as Drayl shot two more Walkers quietly from his spot.

"After I shoot this last one, jump down and get in the truck fast." Daryl instructed Jacob as I saw him look over the ledge and at the truck. Jacob raised a thumbs up to show that he was ready. I aimed at Walkers close by the truck, Glenn doing the same as well as Rick. WE waited for the moment for Daryl to say Go, something I hated doing.

"Now." He said aloud, shooting one more Walker in the eye. Jacob hopped down, hitting the roof of the truck in a flash. At that moment the Walkers turned around at the sound and saw him, having us starting to shoot before they got near him. Jacob got into the truck through the open window and barely missed the arm from a Walker, me taking out that same Walker in one shot. Jacob started the truck and backed up, hitting a few Walkers in the process. All in all, we got about 6 of the Walkers and as soon as he went into drive, we ran to the back of the store in a flash.

I peered over the edge and saw him screech to a halt, having Rick and Glenn hop down into the bed of the truck. Daryl was next, having me be last and hop with a grunt, landing on the metal of the bed.

"Zelda!" I yelled at the top of my lungs, hearing barking in the store. I knew they cracked the door open slightly and I saw Zelda poking her head out of the open door from the store.

"Zelda,_ kommen!" _I said to her aloud, seeing her run over to the back of the truck and have me lower the latch. I pulled her up and as soon as we both were in, Daryl slammed his fist on the roof of the car and Jacob took off. I clung onto Zelda as I heard her whimper from the sudden fastness of the car, Rick slammed the bed shut tightly and Glenn walking over to me.

"You know German?" He asked over the roar of the truck flying down the street. I looked up at him like it was the silliest question he ever asked me.

"Zelda was taught how to take German commands." I replied back to him, looking at him with a amused look on his face. We were silent for the rest of the truck ride, making me look back to see that we left the Walkers behind. We had two full bags of food and other sorts, our weapons and our lives. With the fog rolling in and the success of getting out in one piece, I wanted to curl up into a ball and close my eyes for a moment or two.

To just breathe.

* * *

"How's your head?" I heard next to me as I snapped out of my own thoughts. I looked over and saw it was Glenn, walking over with some gauze, a band aid and cleaning alcohol. I smiled at him, leaning back against the cupboard since I was sitting on the kitchen top once more.

"It's fine." I replied to him, seeing him stand in front of me and point to my head with the gauze in his left hand.

"Let me get that for you." He said to me, placed the tools on the counter top next to me. I shook my head, hating the fact that he was going to do this and I could do it myself. But I didn't, since I was wiped from our recent encounter with Walkers.

"It's fine, really Glenn." I replied to him. But he shook his head and I fell silent then.

"I don't mind. Trust me." He said to me, having me stay quiet as he poured some alcohol on the gauze and wiped the dry blood off my forehead and eyebrow. Once he placed it on the open wound, I squinted slightly and He placed the bandaid on the wound.

"Thanks, Glenn." I replied to him, seeing him shrug.

"It's the least I can do, since you are giving us space in your house." He said to me, having me stop him by placed my hand on his wrist that was near my forehead.

"I meant with earlier today, talking to me about saving Zelda." I said to him, seeing him pause and look at me. I could tell he was a sincere guy, compared to the other two. He was genuine, rare to find in this shitty place of a world. He only smiled at me and placed his hand down in front of him.

"I know how much she means to you, and I can tell you were shaken up with the thought of leaving her behind. Trust me, I know how that is." He replied to me, pausing for a moment with a small smile on his face. And, before I could even say something else, he picked up the medical tools and walked away form me to the front entry way. I sat there on the counter top, closing my eyes for a moment or two before scolding myself.

Don't think like that. Don't think of him like that.


	10. Could I Handle It?

I walked outside to the front porch, seeing the rest of the group outside as well as we saw two cars coming up the front road to the house. It was a foggy day, though the rain as gone. All that was left was the chill of the cool weather and the colorful leaves falling with the weather, signifying the closeness to winter. It was the next dat after our incident at the store, though we had more food and some other supplies that might be needed in the near future. I was wearing cleaner clothes, knowing that I was going to meet the rest of the party that was with Rick, Daryl and Glenn. I wanted to seem like a nice person that they can trust, since the three of them already trusted me. If they were nice, I bet the rest of the group was nice too.

I hoped that I was right.

Jacob stood with me, having a gun next to him on his holster just in case. I knew he was just as nervous as to meeting the rest of Rick's group, but this was part of the deal. If we gave them a roof over their head, then in return we would get protection and safety. He looked at me from our spot near the front porch steps, giving me a small smile. I smiled back, knowing that we were both in this together. I saw Rick with a small smile on face, probably ready to see his family once more since he was away from them. Glenn and Daryl were at the top step of the porch, both of them in clean clothes and looking just as happy as Rick was.

The two cars, the green one that was at the gunstore, and a blue truck pulled up to the front and stopped. I saw in the blue truck the black man from the gunstore, seeing him looking around at the house with curiosity. In the passenger seat was the man no nobody liked, having me see him with a glare on his face and no desire to be liked. In the green car was the woman with the long brown hair and the other woman with the short hair. The young boy was in the back of the green car, his hand pressed against the door and looking as well. Something about the women made me think that they didn't want to be here. But since when did they ever want to be anywhere at this point in the world.

"Dad!" I heard the boy cry out, getting out of the car and running over to Rick. Rick hugged him tightly as the women got out of the car and walked over. The short haired woman met Daryl at the bottom of the stairs and they hugged briefly, as the long haired woman gave Rick a big kiss. Rick pulled away and motion me to come over.

"This is Katie Marshburn, this is her home. Katie this is my wife Lori." Rick introduced us, having me hold out my hand for her to shake. She looked so fragile and skinny, but I knew she was lovely from my spot.

"Welcome." I said to her, seeing Jacob being introduced to Carol.

"Thank you for letting us stay here, it means a lot to us." She replied to me in a grin and I smiled at me, looking down to find the young boy by Lori and Rick.

"This is our son, Carl. Carl this is Katie." Lori said aloud, having me see Carl smile up at me.

"Nice to meet you." He said to me.

"And this is Carol, and T-Dog, and Thomas." Rock introduced the rest of the group. T-Dog shook my hand with a sincere big grin, Carol smiled widely at me. But I saw Thomas not even smile at me, making me see that he was going to difficult to work with. From where I stood, he looked like someone who'd did time in jail, multiple times.

"I still say we would of been better off at the fort." He said in a snort to T-Dog, making me see T-Dog glare at him and Rick as well.

"How about, instead of opening your trap, you put a lid on it." T-Dog said aloud to him, seeing Daryl roll his eyes and Jacob come down a few step toe hand next to me. Compared to Jacob, Thomas was a bit shorter and less of a threat. I knew that he saw Jacob next to me, he was instantly quiet and just grunted in his spot.

"I'm glad you guys came over in one piece, and hopefully you guys will be happy here." I said to them aloud, seeing them all smile at me. All except for Thomas, of course.

"My name is Katie Marshburn, and this is my friend Jacob Thompson." I introduced myself and Jacob, seeing him eye Thomas from his spot and give a small smile to the rest of the group, "Rick told me that you guys needed a place to stay."

"It's very kind of you, truly." Carol said aloud next to Daryl and I saw him smile at her remark, "And if you need help around the home, we are glad to help." From that remark, I heard Thomas snort in his spot and Rick look at him with both shock and anger.

"Thank you, that's very kind of you." I replied to her, seeing a warm smile on her fragile and cool face. But I saw the change in dynamic when Thomas opened his mouth one more time.

"If it help with the rest of you, I won't be partaking in any of the chores. Me? I'm only going to go hunting." He said aloud in a snort. I saw Daryl making a fist at his side next to Carol, who placed a hand on his arm to silently stop him from going too far.

"This is their home, Thomas. We go by their rules." Rick said aloud in a leveled tone, but I knew he was going to try and keep it down in front of the group. Thomas eyed him from his spot and shook his head.

"I don't take orders from anyone." He said aloud in a grunt, having the rest of the group shift in a uncomfortable way. I eyed Jacob from my spot and I saw him about to snap the guy in two.

"You will with Katie and Jacob." I heard Glenn say aloud, making me look at him with both adoration and happiness that he was standing up for me.

"Like hell I will." he replied, having me see Jacob cock his gun and aim right at Thomas square in the chest.

"You don't like taking orders, you might as well leave." Jacob said aloud in a low tone, making me sense that he was going to shoot the gun at any moment without thinking about it. I looked over at Jacob, telling him with my eyes that he needed to lower the gun and be reasonable. BUt the next word coming out of Thomas's mouth was the one thing that stopped me.

"I won't let any bitch tell me what to do." I looked back at Thomas, eyebrows raised and hands on my hips and stayed very still. Carol clutched Daryl to hold him back, Lori pulled Carl behind her to block him, and Rick was giving Thomas the glare of Death.

"You bastard." I heard Jacob say aloud in a growl, but I help up my hand to him.

"It's okay Jacob, I can handle this." I said to him aloud, seeing him look over at me. I walked down the steps to Thomas, standing right in front of him and see him eye me from my spot. I knew he was trying to act tough in front of me, not moving from his spot at all. BUt then again I saw the look behind his eyes, the same look of fear that he had no idea what I was going to do with him.

"I'm giving you three seconds to take back what you called me." I said to him in a low tone, my voice sounding sinister like I was coming from the depths of hell. He snickered from his spot, shaking his head.

"I'm not going to apologize about anything-" I rammed my head into his head, seeing him fall to the floor and go unconscious. I stayed still, looking down at the unconscious Thomas and seeing that I did that, with my own head. My head started hurting immediately, but I wasn't one t show it. I looked behind me, seeing all the stunned faces that they harbored and I drew in a deep breath.

"When he wakes up, send him on his way." I said to Rick, seeing him go from stunned to serious. He nodded his head slowly, having me realize that he was having a new vision of me. Sure I was 22, but I acted more like a captain to his troops than a young woman. He respected my property and my authority, and for that I was grateful for him. I walked past them and towards the front door, back into the house and closing my eyes as soon as I was inside.

"Did you see what she just did?"

"Thank god she did that, I was about to kill that stupid goon."

"I don't it's right, what we did."

"Carol, he was draggin' us behind."

"I like her." I smiled slightly from that last remark that I heard, after hearing the front door opening and closing. I looked behind me and saw it was Jacob, seeing him look at me with both concern and light in his face. He shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged from his spot.

"Well that went well." He said in a light tone, making me laugh slightly. I rubbed my head where I head butted Thomas and Jacob walked over, looking at my head for me.

"How's your head?" He asked me aloud, having me shrug as he examined it from his spot.

"It's fine." I replied to him, seeing him look down at me.

"No more head injuries for you, not for awhile anyways." He instructed me, making me smile and nod his head showing that I understood. We were quiet then for a moment or two before I spoke up again, seeing him rub the back of his neck.

"Do you still think this is a good idea, letting them into our home?" I asked him in curiosity and in fear. He looked back behind me once more at the group outside on the porch and then back at me.

"They're asking the same question you know." He replied to me, making me nod my head, I knew this was the right choice, the better choice. We were all in this together now, whether we liked it or not. I knew this had one obstacle done and over with, but more were going to come.

Could I handle it?


	11. You're Okay Now

We all watched as Thomas slung his backpack over his shoulder, rolled both of his shoulders to get the wind off his back, and walk towards the front gate through the thick fog. I stayed silent the whole time, my arms crossed in front of me and I saw Jacob being very still next to Rick and T-Dog. He was just as glad that the guy left, but I wanted it to be under another circumstance. Not just me slamming my head against his and knocking him out.

For calling me a bitch.

The rest of the group was fine with me, especially t-Dog and Daryl. They were about to kill him themselves and it was the good of the group that he walked away when he could. It was early the next morning and when he came to the previous night, Carol told him gently. But she had reinforcements when Thomas was about to argue, mostly Daryl cocking his crossbow and aiming in the middle of his forehead if he was going to try anything on Carol. Thomas, after thinking about for a second or two, went along with the agreement and asked to stay for the rest of the night. We packed him food to last him until the next town in Georgia, though he never thanked us.

I saw him look back at us through the fog and through the glass window. Lori ushered Carl away and I saw Glenn look over at me. I didn't see him, not at first. But as I made eye contact with Glenn, I knew he was silently telling me that nothing was going to happen. He was gone, no longer a threat. I heard Rick sigh and walk away as well, following his wife and son. Thomas turned back to the front gate and kept walking, his gun in hand and his head down slightly.

"Good riddance." T-Dog said aloud, walking to the kitchen, "That idiot had it coming."

"He's better off alone." Daryl said aloud, moving away from Carol and following T-Dog. Carol walked over to me and placed a hand on my shoulder, making me feel the warmth through my thin shirt.

"You did the right thing, Katie." She said to me, her voice was nurturing and soothing to hear, "It's better for the group. He wasn't a good match for this group anyways." I smiled at her, thinking of how nice she was to make sure that I was okay. I could tell he was a nurturing figure, something that was needed in the house for once since I came back.

"Thank you." I replied to her, seeing her smile grow widely on her face.

"I'll get breakfast ready for us. Lori's gonna help me." She said aloud, "Don't worry about it, we can handle food for now. You need rest." Before I could even argue, she left the room. I sighed once more and rubbed my head, the same place where I knocked out Thomas in one blow. I saw the same scene go off in my head over and over again, making me wonder if I did the right thing or not.

"That was a impressive head butt." I heard from my right, seeing that Glenn was still in the room. It was only the two of us then, since the rest of the house went off to get breakfast ready. I smiled slightly from my spot, seeing a bigger smile on his end.

"Well, I saw it in a movie once." I replied in a shrug, seeing him grin at me and I laughed from my spot. I rubbed my red hair with my fingertips, a nervous tick that I would do in front of guys. But why was I doing it in front of him? It didn't feel right at all, not to me at least.

"I saw my dad teach it to some cadets when I was younger, and I thought it was a cool thing to do." I explained to him, seeing him nod his head and take off the baseball hat he was wearing. His hair was jet black, swept to the side and away from his dark almond eyes. To me it was a shade lighter then black, perhaps from the lighting in the room or the light from outside. But it looked rather nice on him.

"Still, that was a brave thing to do." He replied to me, sounding more sincere about it and I smiled at him, shoving my hands in my back pockets.

"It was nothing really." I replied in a shrug, "I mean, having a captain as a father teaches you a a lot about how to deal with difficult people."

"I wish I knew that." Glenn replied in almost a defeated tone. I tilted my head at him in confusion.

"You seem to do it with Thomas a lot, from what I saw." I said to him as if I was defending him and his honor. But he merely shrugged it off and I thought of him in a different light then. It wasn't that he wasn't confident in himself, he just never thought of himself as the right fit for the group. In a weird way.

"I've learned from Rick and Daryl. They're more outspoken than me when it comes to confrontation, I'm more of a behind the scenes kind of guy." He explained to me, making himself sound like a bad person, let alone weak.

"But I like that." I replied aloud without even thinking, seeing him look back up at me with surprise in his eyes and a hint of confusion, "I mean, we don't need a whole group of outspoken people. From what I've seen, the ones who are behind the scenes know more than the ones who are talking their ears off."

"I guess that's true." He replied, having me look up at his hair with a raised eyebrow.

"When was the last time you had a haircut?"

* * *

"Have you done this before?" He asked me as I snipped off some of the hair in the back. I smiled from my spot, smoothing out his black hair gently as he sat in the chair on the front porch. It was late morning, and after having a proper breakfast made by Lori and Carol, we decided to give Glenn a haircut since there was nothing else to do in the day. Glenn sat in one of the kitchen chairs, a towel wrapped around his neck and the food chilling us in the morning. I french braided my hair back away from my eyes and snipped another piece of his hair.

"Plenty of times. I grew up with four brothers and all of them needed a haircut every once in awhile. My mom taught me how when I was about 13." I replied to him, aiming for the hair next to his ears.

"That's reassuring….I think." He said to me, making me laugh from my spot and snip a piece near his ear that was too long.

"Don't toy with someone who is holding scissors near your head." I warned him, hearing him laugh slightly from his spot as I got back to work on him some more.

"So, since I know you have four brother, a Captain for a father, and you can pretty much fend for yourself, what else is there for me to know about you?" Glenn asked me aloud, having me think about it for a moment.

"What is there to think about?" I asked him, snipping towards the middle of his head.

"I don't know, what do you like to do for fun when you're not being a total badass." He suggest aloud, "Let's make it more interesting: I'll say one thing about me, and you say one thing about you."

"Fine." I replied, thinking it was going to be interesting for the both of us to get to know each other. I heard nothing for a moment or two, making me think that Glenn was thinking of what to say to start off the game.

"I've been a delivery boy for 3 years before the whole…apocalypse thing…happened." He said aloud, making me smile as I smoothed out his hair with the back of my hand.

"I've been a Bike Messenger since I was 18." I replied to him, getting a good chunk of his hair out of the way.

"My favorite food is spaghetti." He said aloud in a light tone.

"My favorite color is green." I shot back at him.

"I once saw Red Hot Chili Peppers in Concert in Atlanta when I was around 12 years old."

"I've broken my arm twice in a row. Once from falling out of a tree and then on the first day as a bike messenger."

"I've never had a successful relationship." He replied aloud, pausing before speaking up again, "I shouldn't of told you that."

"That's fine, the same here." I replied to him in a snort and he laughed from his spot.

"Let's see…I have never gone out of the country." Glenn started back up again.

"I have gone to Australia and Germany." I replied to him, hearing him take in a breath of shock and I snickered.

"The perks of being in a military family." I replied in a grin. Glenn paused for a moment before going on with the game we were playing.

"I've never been in love." When he said this I paused my hands on his head near his neck. It wasn't that the statement was a shock to me, along the lines that he has never been in love before. But it was the fact that he shared it with me, something that would be more private and more secluded. For a moment I had no idea what to say to him in reply, but who was I to stay silent and make him look like an idiot.

"I've never been in love either."

* * *

"Keep your eyes peeled." I heard Daryl say to my right as we walked through the forest. Daryl wanted to comb the forest behind out home and wanted to know the forest better in case we were on the run. PLus he wanted to hunt some game, and I told him we had deer coming through along with rabbits. Daryl was happy to go out, so I decided to join him and Glenn, bringing Zelda along in case we were got in trouble.

It was late afternoon as we walked through the forest, guns aimed and moving from side to side to dodge the trees. Zelda was at my side as my shotgun was aimed up in front of me, aiming from side to side if I heard something in the mist. Daryl was in front of me and Glenn behind me, both with their guns up and ready.

As I was walking, I though back to how Glenn and I were getting to know each other. The last statement he told me, before Daryl came out to ask if we could go into the woods, that statement was still in my head. I thought of Glenn as a hopeless romantic, someone who would want love in his life. But when I heard he was never in love, that shocked me. But it was mostly because he told me this, someone he hardly knows. I looked over at Glenn, seeing him scan the forest without any knowledge of me looking at him. His face was started to be etched in my mind, something I never wanted to erase. But then, I had to stop it. I didn't want to think about him in that way, not right now in this part of my life.

Did I?

"Check around the streams in case of any food we can grab." Daryl said to me, having me nod my head and I walked over to the stream. Glenn and Daryl moved on past me towards a clearing, having me squat down and look at the clear stream in front of me. I saw that it was about 2 feet wide and not even close to being past my ankle when it came to depth. I placed my hand in the water, feeling how cold it was against my pale skin. I closed my eyes, thinking of back when I was young and would play in the creek with my older brothers and my father would come, scooping me in his arms and promising me that he would teach me how to swim. For a moment, even in the heart of the Apocalypse, I was happy with the memories that I had left.

But it came to a halt.

I opened my eyes and saw above me two walkers, right in front me about two feet away. I threw up one gun without thinking, shooting one in the head as the other ran towards me. I had no time to reload, having me swipe the barrel at the head of the second as the first fell dead in the meadow behind the stream. But the barrel only slammed into its chest and the Walker grabbed the barrel in my hands, throwing it to the floor and having me back up on my hands and feet as fast as I could. I was at a lost as to how I was going to deal with this Walker, what as I going to do?

"Katie!" I heard Glenn yell out, his voice echoing through the woods as I kept backing up as fast as I could. I kicked him for trying to swipe at my leg and as I got up from my spot, he snarled at me and swiped at me. He grabbed my arm, making me have the belief that I was in fact was going to die at his hand. Then and there. I screamed out, thinking that Glenn or Daryl would hear and come save me. God I hope they did.

I then felt everything freezing, even the Walker. Something along the lines of blood gushing ringed in the air and I looked over at the Walker. His head had a arrow through the middle, seeing him stagger back and release my arm. He fell to the floor, having me freeze in my spot and look down at my hand. I almost got killed, almost becoming a Walker because I wasn't quick enough. I felt the coolness of the air hit my arm again, making me wake up and look behind me.

Daryl lowered his crossbow as I saw Glenn bolt over to me. I was still in awe that I was saved at the last minute as Glenn stood in front of me, placing his hands on my arms to make me face him completely.

"Are you okay? Did you get bit?" He asked me in a rush tone, his face was showing concern to me, I shook my head, still trying to process the whole ordeal that just happened to me. He could see that I was in shock and he pulled me into a hug. I clung onto him, making sure that I was still alive and this was no dream.

"You're okay now. You're okay, you're safe now." He said to me over and over again, holding me close to him. I held him back, not thinking of doing anything else but hold him close. I had two feelings going through me at that moment. One, was that I was still scared out of my mind from what happened to me and I was trying to understand how it happened. But the other feeling, the one I never wanted to happen at this point in my life: the feeling of admiration towards Glenn.

That and maybe love, was it love?


	12. Worth The Risk?

I woke up in the middle of the night, having a nightmare that I was back in the woods with the Walker who was about to bite me. It was nearly 1 in the morning and I was trying my hardest to get back to sleep. But I was still thinking back to earlier that day. Daryl, bless him and his redneck abilities of saving me from almost dying, was a bit worried since I was quiet the rest of the trip and in a weird state. It was true, I was still freaking out because of the fact I was so close to death. But I wasn't in tears, no was I angry. I was just.

Still.

I got up from the bed and wrapped myself in a cotton jacket. Walking over to the window, I looked out in the woods and saw the darkness in front of me. The trees moved slightly with the wind, making me see the gentle rhythm of the night that was in front of me and the house. I walked over to the door and into the hallway, looking over the banister and seeing a faint glow coming from the living room. Having some curiosity left in me, I walked down the steps of the stairs and over to the living room. Walking in slowly, I didn't want to frighten whomever was in the room on the couch. I then saw it was non other than Glenn, sitting in the couch and staring at the fire as if he was in a trance. There were bags under his eyes, showing he had no sleep in his system for ever. His hair was messy, wearing a gray v neck shirt and one of my brother's pajama bottoms.

"What are you doing up Glenn?" I asked him aloud in a soft tone, seeing him look up at me and snap out of his trance at the fire. He smiled slightly and shrugged.

"Just thinking I guess, my mind's not ready to settle." He replied to me as I walked over to sit next to him. I sat indian style, wrapping myself up more in my blanket as I saw the orange flames dance on his face. His face memorized me the most at that moment, filled with innocence, yet with thoughts that were haunting him. He had the face of a elder, nothing like his age that he was now. Another thing that I admired about him, being wise beyond his years.

"What's on your mind?" I asked him, tilting my head to the side as I heard the fire crackle in the fire place. He was silent for a moment., then speaking up.

"I was thinking of how long we were doing….this." he replied aloud, gesturing to the whole house, "I mean, going from place to place, trying to stay alive and not get bitten. I can't help but wonder, will it ever end? Will things go back to being normal and people will be people, not all of these Walkers."

I paused to think about what he said. I never really thought about if life was going to back the way it was. I mean, really thought about it. It was always in the back of my mind, since everything else in my brain was occupied with the thoughts of staying alive and away from Walkers. But he had a point, what about the future?

"I don't know." I replied in a light tone, seeing him look over at me, "To be honest I haven't thought about it a whole lot maybe."

"Think of it this way." GLenn said aloud, sitting up on the couch and resting his elbows on his knees and staring into the fire, "If this whole thing never happened, I don't think I would be the same person I am right now. I would still be delivering pizzas, taking orders from other people with no complaining, just being me." I frowned slightly at that notion. He made it sound like he didn't like what he was before.

"If you say it that way, I'm glad this happened." I replied aloud, facing the fire and staring into it. I saw Glenn look over at me with a confused look.

"Think about it. If this whole thing, the apocalypse and running for our lives thing. If none of it happened, then we would never be who we are right now. We would be back at our old jobs, doing the same things over and over again, and being the same person we were once. And to be fair, I hated what I was back before all of this happened."

"What makes you say that?" Glenn asked in genuine curiosity.

"I hated my parents, I mean hated them. Well, let's not use that word, I think I mean…..I was distant from them. You know, I never thought about them, wanted to call them and tell him how I was, or even write to them. I wanted to get away from them, not go to them. But when this happened, I was thinking about them again." I paused when I said that, having my mother's face in my mind once more, "That sounds morbid but its true. And I know I changed as a person: I started to make sure people other than me were safe. I placed Jacob before me, and I would risk my neck for him. I don't know…it just feels like this whole thing….made me better."

Glenn was quiet for a moment or two, having me think that he was judging me for what I said to him. I knew what I said sounded so out of this world, but it was also the truth. I knew I changed both emotionally and socially when this whole thing happened: I care more for people and their needs before myself. I wanted others to be safe, I wanted to make sure they were cared for. Others before myself, that was my new policy. I could blame the whole apocalypse for this, or I can just accept it and know that it was for a reason.

"I never thought of it that way." He replied aloud from his spot.

"And it happened to you too." I said back to him in a light tone, seeing him look at me with a raised eyebrow.

"Come on, you said so yourself that you were different before this whole thing happened. If it wasn't for the whole apocalypse, you wouldn't be the strong, confident guy I know you to be." I replied to him, then thinking after one second of pause how silly I sounded in front of him. I wanted to take that back, making me sound like a school girl with a crush. But I saw him smile at me. It was a genuine smile, making me feel my insides so warm because of that one smile he gave me.

"Thanks Katie." He said to me, a mere thanks was the whole night for me. I smiled at him, seeing him smile back at me in front of the roaring fire at midnight. We both were lost in this world, trying to stay alive and stay out of harms way. But I saw, in that moment, that we both were just fine where we were.

Just fine.

* * *

I drank some of my coffee that I made that morning, trying to make up since I went to bed a bit after my conversation with Glenn. It was still foggy in our area, and I was wondering if we were ever going to have some sun again in the area. But It was dearly morning and the house was waking up slowly. I saw Daryl walking in the kitchen and scratching the back of his head. He was waking up himself, seeing me and smirking at me. I smiled at him, taking in a drink of the coffee from my spot at the kitchen table.

"So, I heard you and Glenn talking in the living room last night." He said to me, his accent was thick in the room. I smirked and looked over at him.

"Did you now?" I asked him in a coy tone, seeing him smile widely as he grabbed a mug and poured himself a glass.

"You two are getting along quite nicely" he said aloud, as if he was trying to prove a point. So I raised my eyebrow at him and I saw him drink most of the coffee in one gulp.

"Do I wanna know what is going on in your brain?" I asked him aloud, hearing him snicker and tap the table with his knuckles.

"Doubt it, but I'll say it anyways. You two are getting close, that much is certain. It's pretty obvious to our group that the kid likes you." He said to me, having me smile at him as if he was trying to tell me pigs could fly.

"Yeah right, Daryl." I replied to him in a smirk, getting up to refill my cup.

"You don't believe me?" He asked me in a shocked tone.

"I highly doubt Glenn would like me." I replied to him, facing him as I leaned against the counter and drank some more coffee.

"Keep doubtin' yourself, sweetheart. But it ain't rocket science to see that the kid likes you. I see how he looks at ya, and it's pretty obvious he's smitten." Daryl explained to me. I sighed and shook my head.

"Even if it is true, it won't work Daryl." I said to him.

"Now why would you say that?" He asked me aloud, a hint of curiosity in his tone of voice.

"Because you guys will leave soon, and then where will that leave us?" I asked him in a serious tone of voice. He paused, thinking about it himself and I knew I had him there at that point. I sighed and rubbed my red hair in his fingertips.

"All I am saying, is that it's not worth pursuing if you know it's not going to last." I explained to him, "The last thing I would want to deal with is a heart break."

"You might not get heartbreak from him." He said aloud, having me pause in my spot and think about his statement. Daryl was probably right, what if Glenn wasn't going to break my heart? He might, but then again it wasn't like him. Would it have to be me in order to save us both. Was it worth pursuing something with Glenn? Daryl sighed and walked over to the counter and placed his mug in, looking back at me and then shrugging.

"Don't give up on the guy just yet, Red." He said, having me look at him and seeing that he was serious, "If I know Glenn, in this case I have for awhile, I know he's worth the pursuin'. " He then walked out of the kitchen quietly as I heard the others getting up from their beds and their feet on the floor above me. I closed my eyes and tried to think of that notion of the both of us. It sounded too far fetch, nothing that would possibly happen. At least, not with me.

Was he worth it? Was I even worth it?


	13. Missed The Daughter

"Zelda, _Holden!" _I said aloud as I threw the ball along the backyard lawn. It was midday, and a week since the group moved into the house. Everyone was getting along together in the house, especially Jacob and Daryl. They would go off hunting together for some deer and squirrels, their own way of having entertainment. I got along with Carol pretty easily, learning on how to cook certain foods and dishes. She would help with the laundry and some of the cleaning, even though I asked her not to since It was my home and I should do it. But she argued with me, since I was giving them their home to stay in.

"It's the least I can do since we are staying in your home. I want to help in any way that I can." She said to me, making me like her even more. She was a blessing in disguise, having me see how she treats everyone in the house with love and respect. Especially Daryl, whom she spends most of her time with. Carol explained to me that she had a rough time with the group, and she found peace in Daryl and his presence.

Zelda walked back over with the tennis ball in her mouth, wagging her tail as I squatted down to greet her with a head rub.

"_Gut gemacht _Zelda! Good girl!" I said to her, seeing her wag her tail faster as she dropped the tennis ball onto the ground in between us. I felt the chill wind coming through the area, making me thankful that I was wearing an old peacoat my mother had and my hiking boots.

"What did you just say?" I heard behind me, a small voice. I looked behind me and saw Carl standing at the backdoor, about 10 feet away from me. He was wearing his father's sheriff hat on his head, looking at me with curiosity. I smiled at him, getting up from squatting and facing him.

"I said 'well done'. Zelda knows German." I explained to him, seeing him walk over to me and smiled slightly from the new discovery.

"She does?" He asked me, having me nod my head and shove my hands in my peacoat, "How does she know that?"

"My dad taught her when she was a puppy." I said in a light tone, seeing my breath in the cool air. Carl's face lit up happiness from the new information and I smiled. I never got to know Carl as much as I did with Glenn and Carol.

"Can you teach me?" He asked me aloud, then looking over at Zelda who was looking back at him in intrigue.

"Can I pet her?" He asked me. I nodded my head and he walked over to Zelda, holding out his hand at her face. I watched carefully as Zelda sniffed his hand, making sure that he was safe enough. Zelda immediately licked his hand and Carl giggled from his spot. That part warmed my heart, seeing him play with Zelda in a time where play was not looked on nicely.

"She likes you." I replied to him, seeing him rub the top of his head, "I can teach you some German to her."

"Okay!" Carl said aloud, walking over to me.

"Say this to her in a loud voice: _Legte Zelda._" I explained to him in a soft voice. He nodded his head and faced Zelda.

"_Legte Zelda!"_ He said aloud, his voice a bit bigger than usual. Zelda laid down on the floor and looked up at Carl for the next command. Carl's eyes went big and he smiled widely at what he did. he looked over at me and I nodded my head of approval at him. I then saw Daryl, Glenn and Jacob walk over to the two of us from the side of the house.

"Woah now, since when do you speak German?" Daryl asked aloud in a smirk to Carl. Zelda looked over and saw Jacob, getting up and running over. Jacob rubbed behind her ear and I heard Zelda bark in approval.

"Katie taught me." Carl explained in a grin as Glenn walked over to me and stood next to me, hands in his cotton jacket pocket. He smiled at me, having me feel some bits of butterflies in my stomach. This was a first since I met him, and I had no clue why this was coming at this time. He was only wearing his baseball hat and being his normal self. But why was this happening now?

"Now don't say any of that around your mom, she will have a field day on Katie." Daryl said aloud , having me look over at him with confusion.

"What makes you say that?" I asked him aloud.

"Lori's not keen on things changing when it comes to her son." Glenn said aloud to me, having me think about it for a moment or two. Lori, like Carl, was one of the few that I hardly got to know since they arrived at the house, but I knew that she was trying to keep Carl alive.

"And she's going to have another kid." Daryl said in a grunt, low so that Carl wouldn't hear. He was too occupied with Zelda, throwing the tennis ball and having her fetch the ball. Jacob walked over to me as I watched Zelda chase after the ball.

"How was your hunting session?" I asked him in a coy tone. Jacob smiled and shrugged in his spot next to me.

"It was fine, caught some squirrels and checked out more of the area. I'm thinking of going back into town and seeing if there's anything else we can grab for the house." he explained to me, having me nod my head as I saw Glenn nod his head from what he heard.

"I might want to join you on that, if that's okay?" He asked Jacob aloud, having me look at him in surprise. I never took Glenn as someone that adventurous. But Jacob smiled and I knew that deal was made. Glenn was growing on me, and so the the rest of the group of course. It was only a matter of time when they wanted to did.

Did they?

"Katie!" I looked behind me and I saw Carol come through the backdoor, holding up what looked like a disc in her hand. I raised a eyebrow at her, thinking of what she was doing with that. The rest of the group looked and I walked over to her.

"I found this while I was making food in the pantry. It has your name on it, and it looks like your mother writing. I figured it was her hand writing since I saw the notes on the refrigerator." She explained to me as I gently took the disc from her in my hands. It was my mother's hand writing and I looked at it with confusion.

"A DVD?" I asked aloud, looking back at her. I wondered why this had my name on it. I never saw this before, why it took so long for me to find it I had no clue. But I knew I had to watch it.

* * *

I hit play on the remote, seeing the screen come up on the TV. I saw the living room, brightly lit from the sky outside the house and I saw my mother sitting there in a chair. She was looking so weary and scarred in her spot, her brown hair framing her face and making me gasp. I forgot, only for a second, how her face looked. But there she was, looking right at me in the TV. The rest of the group gave me privacy and waited outside, not wanting to disturb me as I watched the DVD.

"Katie." My mother said aloud, her voice was heavenly but scared and fragile, "If you're watching this, I know you came home to try and find us. But you need to know, we left and we are going to try and come back." I felt tears starting to form in my eyes. I wanted to see her more then ever then.

"Your father wants to try and head West, and try to find your brother Samuel. He's still in school at this point and he's the closest one to us. David and Ryan found each other and they are safe in Washington D.C, but we don't know about Harry. I wanted to come and find you, but they are blocking the roads to New York. Your father tried to get through, but it was no use." She explained to me, having me feel the two drops of tears pour down my face and I held in my sobs by placing my hand over my mouth.

"I know you're fighting your way through this, and I know for a fact that you'll try to come home. If we don't see each other again, though I hate it to say that it might happen, I want you to know a few things. One, there is a safe in the house and it has all of our money in it. We left it here in case we come back. At this point, we don't need money to stay alive anymore." I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to hold back anymore tears in my eyes.

"Secondly, Zelda ran off two days ago and we can't find her. If you find her, keep her with you and don't loose her. And Thirdly, I want you to know….your father and I love you. Beyond words, sweetheart. I know it was hard that you were resenting us when you left for New York, but just know that we prayed for you, we thought of you and we never stopped loving you." I felt more sobs coming through my hands from my mouth as I felt more tears falling to my jeans.

"Fight your way through this whole thing, Katie. You're a fighter, a good one too. I know you can do this. I want you to help anyone who can, it's the least you can do in this world we're in." she explained to me as I saw her look out and away front he camera, her eyes going big.

"I have to go now, we're leaving the house pretty soon before they come to get us. I love you so much, and I'll see you soon!" She said, giving me one last smile before the TV going dark. I was silent then, hearing the buzz of the TV and I tried to understand what happened. They knew I was coming home, somehow they knew. And they knew that I was going to fight through the whole apocalypse. She loved me, more than words. My father did too. They were trying to find my brother and get them back together.

They just missed the daughter


	14. You Need A Protector

It was raining outside the house, though I was too occupied with what I just witnessed on the DVD. I wanted to not be there at that point, I wanted to be with my family and no where else. After I watched the DVD, I immediately went to my room and the rest of the group knew that this DVD was making me depressed. It was my mother's face that made me shut down for a few hours, her face that was once filled with warmth. I wanted to see her face again, hers and my father's face. Hell, I wanted to see everyone in my family.

I woke up to the sound of the rain hitting the roof of the house, facing the window and seeing the fog coming through the high pines trees. I stayed still, wrapped in a fleece blanket that I didn't fall asleep wearing. Carol must of placed it on me while I was asleep, bless her heart. My hair was messy, my arms wrapped around my middle, and my heart was breaking.

All over my family.

I wished that I was faster in coming home, thinking that I would of been able to find them and leave with them. What if they were still alive? What if they did get to the West Coast? I knew they didn't have a way to get back to me, and that part killed me. The fact that I was alone with a group of people that I hardly knew, trying to survive without my family, was the one thing that broke down my strength and thick skin. I tried to be strong for the sake of being alive, but I knew I could only take so much.

I didn't hear the door opening, or closing a bit after. The coolness of the wind came through the wind as I saw a reflection in the window from my bedroom: It was Lori. The one person that I never thought would come and see me, since I knew she was occupied with her son and her husband.

"Carol wanted me to check up on you." She said aloud, her voice was a bit raspier than Carol, but none the else she sounded nurturing. I looked over at her over my shoulder slightly. She smiled at me, her brown hair was beyond her shoulders and she looked quite lovely for her age. Even though I was hurting, she was trying to help me through the pain.

"How are you doing?" She asked me as I faced the window once more. She walked over to sit on the bed facing me, her face was in my view now as I looked out into the fog once more.

"I just miss them." I replied aloud, hearing how small my voice and how frail it was since I hardly spoke in hours. Lori nodded her hard, "I didn't know they were going out West. Hell, I didn't know they were going to do anything but leave."

"But you know now don't you?" Lori asked me, having me look up at her, "They told you and they thought about you. Some people loose the ones they love without any knowledge as to where they're going." I nodded my head to this, knowing what she said was true. It happened to Jacob, since he had no clue where his family was and where to find them. My family tried to let me know what they were going to do.

"I just wish I found them sooner." I replied to him, my voice was still soft.

"I know you do." Lori replied to me, having me pull the blankets over my shoulders a bit more,"But you still have the knowledge that your parents are out there trying to survive, just as much as you are. And I have a feeling that they would be proud of you." I was silent after she said that, making me think of how hard they would be fighting through the Walkers and others trying to stop them. I had to hold onto that hope, that piece of hope that would make me heart a bit better then. It was nice to talk to Lori about it, and she was nice enough to hear me out and give me advice and nice words. She smiled at me once last time before getting up from the bed.

"I'll get you some soup to drink." She said to me, walking back over to the door. I looked back behind my shoulder.

"Thanks Lori." I replied to her, making me voice a bit louder. She looked back at me and smiled at me. Just seeing her smile at me made me think of the previous thought I had about her went out the window. She was in fact kind to me, and I never thought of her that way until now.

"You're welcome." She replied to me, then walking out of the door and I faced the window once more. Even though I talked to her, hearing that she was still trusting me and holding on for me, I still felt the pain in my chest. It felt more of an ache that I couldn't fix, and I wished I could fix it in a heartbeat. I had to hold onto the thought that they were still alive, it was only thing that was keeping me going in that time. That DVD gave me hope.

But it also gave me pain.

* * *

I woke up again, this time it was getting late and the sky was dimming a darker shade of gray. I must of feel asleep when Lori left the room earlier that day. I had a dream about the DVD once more, seeing my mother's face and hearing her tell me to hold on. She told me to fight, and fight to the end. I didn't want to get up from the bed, just wanting it to envelope into the blankets and fade away. ONly for a moment or two.

The heard the door opening and closing once more, and I looked behind me. I saw it was Glenn, wearing his baseball hat and looking in at me. Just seeing his face made my heart and my insides feel a little warmer. I sat up slowly from my spot on the bed and sat against the headboard of the bed as Glenn walked over with a bowl of soup in his hand.

"Lori saw you feel asleep, and she wanted to wait to give you this until you woke up." Glenn said aloud to me, his voice sounding soothing to me as I ripped my eyes to get them to wake up. He placed the hot cowl of soup on the nightstand and then sat on the bed next to me. I felt very shy in front of him then, thinking of how silly it was that I was reacting in that way. The more I thought about it, the more I looked like a coward and failure.

"I shouldn't of react that way, after seeing that DVD." I muttered, fiddling with the edge of the blanket that was wrapped over me. Glenn shrugged.

"People cope in different ways. The only thing that matters is that we cope." Glenn explained to me, having me look back at him. I could see that he was telling the truth then, and there I was looking so haggard in front of him from the dry tears on my face and my hair in knots.

"I just never wanted them to go to that length to find me." I said aloud to him, seeing him shift on the bed as I kept talking, "I knew they were going to try and get out alive. But I never thought they would go and try to find me and my brothers."

"You'd rather them go off without you?" He asked me in confusion.

"I'd rather have them not be in danger for me. I'm the type of person who places others before myself." I explained to him, seeing him try to soak in all that I told him, "And the fact that they went out of the way to come and get me, that's morbid to me. I never wanted them to rick their lives for me." I hated saying it, but it was true. I was taught to help others before myself, even placing my life on the line. It as how I was raised; others before yourself.

"That's a dangerous thing to think about." I heard next to me and I looked up, seeing Glenn look at me directly in the eye. He said that, making my heart stop beating for one second. It was as if he was disagreeing with what I was taught all my life. Was he? And how could he say that to me?

"Someone has to look out for you when something goes wrong. If you're placing yourself for others, who's looking after you?" Glenn asked me aloud in a serious tone. It was as if he was silently asking permission to look after me, to help me, and mostly.

To protect me.

"I never wanted people to look out for me." I replied to him, sounding like I was putting up a fight with him when it came to my protection.

"You don't need to give permission in order for someone to look out for you." Glenn countered back at me, having me fold my hands on my lap as he spoke, "And we you need someone to look out for you in a time like this, in a world like this." The more he spoke about my protection, the more I thought about him doing this for me. He did get scared when I had the incident in the woods with the Walker, and he stood up for me with Thomas. But was he going to protect me? Would I trust him enough to help me and be close to me?

"You make it sound like it's going to be you to protect me." I muttered aloud, seeing him smile from his spot as he looked down on the floor. I looked at him, seeing a guanine smile back on his face and the light hitting his smooth face.

"Is that a bad thing?" He asked me back, his voice was softer and more calm than before when we almost had a fight for my safety. I was left thinking of how he was going to protect me, if this was the right choice for the both of us. I knew he had his loyalties to the group, and if they would leave he would go with them. But until then, what would become of us? My feelings for him had to be buried, this was no place for love. Not in this world. We were adults here, and the last thing I bet he wanted to deal with was the fact that I was liking him with a school girl crush. Without thinking, I reached out with my left hand, grabbing his hand from his lap and holding in mine gently. He looked down at our joined hands for a moment and then over at me. Just seeing his almond shaped eyes that were filled with genuine happiness and curiosity, along with bravery and courage, made me melt in the bed all over again.

"Not at all." I replied to him in a breathy tone. He smiled widely at me, holding my hand back in between us and squeezing it slightly. Even though I was in pain, worried about my family and wondering where I was going to end up at the end of the world, I had a moment or happiness with him.

And I wished it would last.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Hey guys! I hope you still like the story, leave me a review and tell me how I'm doing! Thanks for your support!


	15. Trust Me

"Make your move." I said aloud to him, seeing Daryl look at the board in between us and had the look of concentration. It was starting to snow in our area of Georgia, though the fog lifted and gave us some color in the woods and sky. The forest was covered in white snow, giving it a more peaceful feeling in the whole situation. Since I watched the DVD some weeks back, I knew my family was still trying to survive. I was going to fight and survive on my end of the deal, knowing my mother and father would want that. Not to mention that I was getting close to Glenn day by day since we would go on runs together into town, play most of the board games with Carl and get to know each other during meals. I was liking his company more and more, finding it odd when he was never around me. Jacob could see how I looked at Glenn and he would call me out on it, having me give him death glares and warn him not to say a word.

Daryl sighed as he moved one of his black pieces on the checkerboard to where he thought he had the upper hand. I smiled, moving my one red piece one three of his pieces and he cursed under his breath. I took his three pieces off the board.

"Damn girl I can't win with you." Daryl said aloud in a grunt as I took a drink of the beer from the cup next to the board. Daryl took a drink from his beer bottle.

"Sorry that you can't take the heat." I replied back to him, seeing him smirk at me as I heard footsteps on the second floor of the house. We were silent for a moment or two, having me look out the window and see some of the snow fall. The house was filled with warmth, thanks to the cooking that I would do with Lori and Carol, and the fireplace roaring with firewood Rick and Daryl chopped. Since their stay at the house, they were all helping out throughout the house and making it clean. Even though I never asked for them to do those things, they did it anyway since I was providing the home for them.

"So, seems to me that you and Glenn are getting to know each other." Daryl said to me aloud in a smirk as I took another drink from my cup.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I said aloud in a grunt as I had the alcoholic drink go down my throat in a smile. He grinned widely at me as he leaned back in the chair.

"Oh come on Red. You know what I am talkin' about. I see you two talking to each other like it's a typical picnic. Everyone in this whole house sees it." He explained to me as he scratched the back of his head. I shook my head at him, trying to deny it in front of him.

"We only talk, Daryl. Nothing more and nothing less." I reminded him aloud, seeing him shake his head.

"And you wish you did more than talk don't ya?" He asked me, having me stare at him with wide eyes and hear him laugh from his spot. I shook my head, thinking of Daryl as one of my older brothers, filled with teasing and jabs at my heart in a playful way. I smiled from my spot, thinking of how silly it was to think about, since I was never one to act out on what I was feeling. I was about to say something else when Rick walked over to the two of us, determination in his eyes as he faced us.

"We found another house, a bit down the hill and away from here, but it looks like no one lives there." He explained to us, then looking over at me, "Do you know any of the neighbors around here?"

"I don't, we kept to ourselves up here since the nearest residence is a mile out." I replied back to him in a shrug. He nodded his head from his spot and I saw Daryl get up from the chair.

"Let's check it out and see what we can find." Daryl said, his voice filled with adventure and determination as I looked outside to see what the weather was going to be like for us if we went out there. I thought of it being a bad idea, maybe staying behind until we know that the weather would be stable enough to go out in. But then again, it could be a good idea to go before a blizzard came through. I looked back at the two men, who were waiting for my end of the deal.

"Let's go."

* * *

We trekked through the snow in the forest, the like light snow falling on us as I had my shotgun close to my body. I was wearing my heavy duty army coat, skinny jeans and boots that I knew would get me through the snow and my hair french braided back into a tight bun. My shotgun was in hand and my machete was strapped to a holster on my hip, making me feel much better being equipped as we went in the direction where Rick was leading us. I was with Rick, Glenn and Daryl, Jacob staying behind to guard the house with the rest of the group. I wanted to go find this house and help in any way that I could, and since I was a female I was going to jump on the opportunity to fight with the boys.

The rest of the group was dressed in warm clothing as well as I, also equipped with their weapons of choice as we went down a steep hill through thicker trees. The farther we were from the house, the more concerned I was getting as to where we were going and if we were going to find out way back. But I had some faith in the group, mostly Rick since he was determined to find out this new mystery in our lives. I was towards the back with Glenn as Rick and Daryl were in the front of the group. The chill of the wind coming through the area made me shiver as we walked one, having me then see Rick throw up his hand to stop us.

We all froze in our spots, staying very still as he looked dead on ahead of him. I threw up my gun in front of me, just in case we saw or heard something coming through. Glenn did the same as I saw Rick motion us to com towards him quietly. Glenn and I walked up slowly to be next to Rick and Daryl, having us see what he was seeing. About 100 feet away there was a small farm house with smoke coming up through the chimney. It was a brown house, worn down and looked like it was looted by floaters earlier in the year. I looked around the area for a moment or two before looking at Rick, seeing him scan the area. In his eyes, we were in trouble, since there was smoke coming from the chimney.

"Hide." He said aloud, the four of us dashing behind a tree and staying still as we heard rustling in the house. I was by a tree next to Glenn as we stayed still, hearing the front door opening and closing, along with some hooting and hollering. I looked around the corner slightly and saw a group of me coming out the house, holding bottles in their hands and guns as well. They looked my age, but they there more red neck than Daryl. They had roughness all over them, along with strength and carelessness for the world. But one of them made me loose by breath, making me cringe as to knowing who it was.

Thomas.

Daryl cursed under his breath as Ricked closed his eyes in defeat. I looked over to Glenn in panic, thinking of how we were going to deal with him once more. Glenn placed his hand out in font of him, silently telling me to calm down and wait for something to happen, His eyes told me silently that it was going to be okay. We only had to stay still for a moment or two and let them get out of the house. But how long were they going to be?

"Let me tell ya, whoever lived here knew how to party." One of them said aloud in a snort and the other laughed. I cringed from behind the tree, hopping that they would leave soon or we could try to get out of there in one piece.

"Where's that one house you were tellin' us about? The one where that chick kicked your ass?" One of the other guys said aloud in a sneer.

"It's up the hill, and she was a nasty one for doing that." Thomas replied in a low groan, having em picture him in my brain one more time before hearing the next sentence in a gasp.

"We should pay them fellers a visit and see what they did to that there house." The 1st man said aloud, having me look at Glenn in shock and seeing his eyes go wide as well. If they tried to get to the house, then we would be at war with not just Walkers, but humans as well. But we heard nothing for a moment or two, having me stay very still and wonder what they were going to do. But I then heard a gunshot on my tree, barely hitting my in the face and I threw my hand over my mouth from screaming out.

"There's people out there! Get them!" As soon as we heard that, the four of us bolted back towards true house and ran as fast as we could through the snow. I ran as fast as I could with Glenn next to me, dodging the trees back and forth and hearing gunshots from behind us. I knew they were running after us and if we lead them to the house, then it was game over.

WE ran up the hill and downy he other side, the four of us spread apart but staying together. I went for the left with Glenn and Rick and Daryl went for the right, dodging more trees and almost getting hit by a bullet from another one of the rednecks. I pulled Glenn over and we hid behind a bigger tree in case we were getting to be caught.

"We can't lead them to the house, they'll kill us all if we do." I said to him in a rushed tone, seeing him look over from the tree to find the boys. I immediately shoved my shotgun in his hands, seeing him look at me with wide eyes. I had a plan, and he was going to hate it.

"Katie, what are you doing?" he asked me in confusion. I grabbed his spare hand, squeezing it tightly.

"I need you to trust me right now." I said to him hearing the gunshot get louder and louder, "I'll lead them away from you three and you guys hide until I get them away from you. Get back to the house and make sure everyone's okay."

"No, no way." he refused at me.

"Glenn I knew these woods better than all three of you. I can hid in here and they will never find me, But I need to get them away from you, and you need to get back to the house." I explained to him in a rushed tone, seeing him shake his head at my notion. But I placed my hand on his neck near his face to make sure he was facing me the whole time. I hated this plan, I never wanted this to happen. But I had to protect them, and make sure they were going to make it out alive. I wasn't going to let them get hurt and have that rest on my conscience for the rest of my life.

"Trust me Glenn. I'll come back to you." I said to him, seeing him look at me and search my eyes. He was trying to make sure I was making the right decision, but I knew this was killing him since he wanted to protect me. He wanted to fight this, but I had to protect him. I cared about him too much.

"Go." I said to him, looking at him one last time before shoving him slightly away from me, "Go!" I ran away from him and into the open, through the woods and to the right of the three of them.

"There's one, get her!" I heard behind me, having me look and see the four of them after me. I ran faster than ever, my hand on the machete handle and making sure I dodged every tree. In the back of my mind I wanted to look back at the boys and make sure they were safe. But I did, seeing Rick pull Glenn away from the tree we were at and then Daryl joining them. I didn't make out what he was doing, but I knew he was yelling my name over the sound of my running and the gunshots. I saw his face, his face of horror and sadness. If I was ever going to see him again, I had to keep running and survive from this group.

So I ran.


	16. Only One On My Mind

Another bullet went past my head as I dodged another tree on my left. I never stopped running, since I knew I had to get them away the house. Not only was I thinking about the group back in the house and their safety, there was no way I was going to let them get near my home that I grew up in. It was a part of me, and I wasn't going to let it get damaged or looted at the hands of rednecks. Not when I had anything to do with it.

"Where are you runnin' to girl!" I hear behind me, along with a hoot and holler from another redneck. I dodged trees some more as I hopped over the stream, The bitter cold was biting at my cheeks and neck. I was pumping with my arms, stopping for a moment to figure out where I was going to hide. I knew tho forest like the back of my hand. Where I was leading them as back to the side hideaway, away form my house for about three miles and leading back towards Fort Benning in the back country. I was glad it was going this way, seeing a bit of a cliff in front of me and what looked like a cave. I ran up the hill towards the cliff, kicking a tree trunk along the way to cover the tracks behind me. It worked as I felt the snow hitting the floor behind me to cover my boot marks as I ran up the hill some more. I was far enough away form the rednecks who were still trekking behind me. I looked just in case, hearing them a but farther away but still getting closer. Thank God I was a fast runner.

"Where did she go?!" I heard one said aloud, his voice was far away and hidden in the trees. I kicked another tree to cover more tracks as I saw the smallish cave on the top of the cliff. I stood at the mouth of the cliff and looked in for a moment. I could only fit her nice and snug, far enough back to where they won't see me if they looked in. I had no choice since if I was going to run anymore, they were going to catch me.

"Let's find her! Quit yackin'!" Thomas said aloud, his voice was sounding like vengeance for what I did. I ran into the cave already trying to move around to get myself snug in the cave. It was very moist in there from the snow and rain in the previous days. It was much cooler in there as I threw the hoodie that I was wearing under my army coat and covered most of my face as I tucked into the cave in the corner. I had the machete taken off my holster on my hip and had it hidden behind me so I can sit in the cave much better. Being the cave made me think that I was in the last place that I wanted to be at. But I knew this was the best for the group, getting myself in danger for them. Maybe Glenn was right. Maybe this was dangerous for me.

"Where is she?" I heard the voices getting louder and closer to the area. I stayed very quiet, not hearing anything but the cool wind coming through the woods and the trees. My breathing was the only other sound, my breath coming haggard and seeing it go through the darkness of the cave.

"She couldn't of gone that far." I heard another voice say aloud as I wrapped my arms around my legs, getting more and more scared that I was going to be seen. I silently prayed to whoever would hear that I would be spared, and that they were dumb enough not to find me.

"Why were we chasing here in the first place? And where the hell are we?" Another voice said aloud, making me hope that they would give up.

"I have no idea, she lead out in the middle of nowhere." The first voice said aloud, I closed my eyes. I tried to think back to the house, what they were doing at the moment and making it more positive than the moment I was in right now. They must of been wondering where I am. Especially Jacob, who I've been with since this hold thing started. We never separated when we met up in New York, and this was the first time I was merely afraid for the both of us. Jacob would try to find me, fighting off the group who knew what I was doing, It was risky, and I was going to get en earful from him when I got back.

"Let's get out of here, she'll freeze to death out here." One of the voices said aloud, making me hope that I was going to get out of here alive. I thought back to the house again, seeing everyone's faces in the house all safe and warm. Then I thought of Zelda and her determination to survive. If she can do this as a dog, I can do this as a human. And then the last person, whom I thought of the most.

Glenn.

His face came to my mind, at the one point to where I was trying to think go surviving. I never thought of anything else at this point, but seeing him one again and hearing his voice. But this was the last place, stuck in a small cave and making sure that I would stay alive. He was the only person I knew I would feel ultimate happiness from him. It was sappy to think of him in that moment, for I knew it was the only way in this shit hole of a situation that I was going to survive.

Hope of seeing him again.

I heard nothing else for a moment or two, having me look out to see no one out there. There was no sound out here, nothing but the wind. Not even the sound of the rednecks moving around. I stayed still, very still since I knew they could be hiding from me. But after a few moment or two, I scooted myself out of the cave slightly and looked out. There was no one in sight, only the white snow and the four sets of footprints on the floor. THe sound of the wind and the sound of my breathing was filling the air. I looked farther out into the woods, still seeing nothing out there but the trees. I immediately grabbed the machete still in the cave and placed it back on my hip in the holster. Jumping off the slight cliff I landed on the snow and almost rolled. But getting back up from the floor, I ran back to the right and towards the direction of the house.

It was starting to get dark in the area as I ran as fast I could. If I was going to get back to the house. I had to run faster than ever. As I ran, I thought about how my parents and what they would think of me doing this. Would they be proud of me now, running for my life against rednecks? This made me feel much more of a weakling and a pathetic human or running instead of fighting. But I was doing what I was told to do:

Surviving.

* * *

**Glenn's POV**

"We will find her." Rick reassured me as I sat at the kitchen table, trying to hold my act together as we all sat in the kitchen and tried to think about what to do. After seeing her run off with the other guys after her, I was thinking nothing more than to just get back to her and make sure that she was alive. But Rick and Daryl dragged my away, thinking that she would be oaky out there by herself. Why would that think that? She was only one person against four grown men who looked like they wanted blood. It was getting darker as we talked about, making em more concerned that she was going to be lost out there.

"I still don't understand why she ran off." Lori said aloud, shoving her hands in her back pockets.

"She went off to get them off our tail, and not find the house." I replied back to her in a low tone, trying not to yell at her. But it was hard for me not to, since she didn't really think about it herself.

"She was protecting us." Daryl said aloud, standing next to Carol who was looking at him in concern, "Though she was getting herself in trouble in return."

"Look, she knows how to get back. She's gown up here and she knows the woods so well." Jacob explained aloud to the group, having me look at him from my spot. I could tell he was telling me the truth, but it was still scaring me knowing that she was alone, "If anyone can get through this forest in one piece, it's her."

"She probably steered then to the back country of the area and then backtracked to get back here." Rick explained to the group aloud, "We could go out there right now and get her back."

"And have the risk of being seen again by those goones?" T-Dog countered back aloud to the group.

"And leave her out there to freeze?" I countered back to him in almost a louder tone, hearing nothing for no one for a moment or two. It sounded morbid, coming from me, but it was true. I didn't want her to freeze out in the forest alone., I hated that thought, it was the worst. But why was I thinking about this about Katie. She was so throng and so independent, knowing how to take care of herself and nothing else coming in to ruin in. But the way I thought about her, how her hair looked in the firelight, or how she laughed at one of my many bad jokes. It made me smile to think about, and yet I was thinking about this now. But I never thought about it before.

"She be here soon, I know how she is." Jacob reminded me in a reassuring tone, having me nod my had and hear Rick sigh from my spot.

"I'm gonna comb the edge of the forest." Rick said aloud, moving to get out of the kitchen.

"I'm coming with you." T-Dog said aloud, moving to follow Rick but looking down at me before he left. I looked up at him, seeing him nod his head at me.

"She'll be alright, Glenn." he said to me, having me nod my head and watching him move out of the kitchen to follow Rick. Daryl got up from his spot from next to Carol and, with only me seeing, squeezed her hand and walking over to me.

"Carol and I will check out the front of the house and on the left side." Daryl said to me and he left with Carol behind him. I was left in the room with Jacob, since Lori and Carl left the room without saying a word. I stayed quiet for a moment or two, trying to reassure myself that she was going to fine out there on her own. She still had her machete, she still had her instincts to get back alive. I had to hold onto that thought, that hope for her.

"Glenn." I heard from Jacob. I looked up at him, hands still folded on the table and my minds still racing. But there was Jacob, sitting against the counter and hang in his arms folded in front of him. He looked so calm in this situation, his face was smooth and not filled with worry or fear for his good friend.

"She's going to come back here." He said to me, his voice filled with seriousness and hope. I needed to hear that, though it was something I heard before from the others. But coming from Jacob, the one person in the whole house whom Katie was closest to, it made me feel better and believe even more that she was going to make it. I've only her for a little amount of time, but in that time i got to know her much more than anyone else in my life. I was willing to be my vulnerable self in front of her, and she with me. It made me think.

Was I in love with Katie Marshburn?


	17. I Am Now

I walked out of the area, trying to catch my breath and see if I can make it back to home in time. I looked behind me, seeing nothing or no one after me. I could barely breathe in my spot, trying to get more oxygen in my lungs. But it was hard, since the snow was making it hard for me to run through. My skin was freezing and my head was lighter than ever since I hardly eat in what seemed like hours. Not to mention that I was running for my dear life. I needed to get back to the house, back to Jacob, Rick and his leadership, and Glenn.

Glenn.

I never forgot about him, since his face was forever engraved in my mind and his voice was no long foreign to my ears. His own hope gave me hope, his optimism on who to get out of a situation was something that I needed in this world we were in. All the time I was running, trying to stay alive, and being alone, he was in my mind. I missed him so much for as long as I was gone from the Manor, and I waited to find him once more.

But then again, why was I thinking of him like this? We only knew each other for a little bit of time, but I trusted him completely with everything I told him, secrets and all. I was treading through dangerous waters with this going through my head in the current situation. But I couldn't help it, since I knew the world we were in we only had to think about the positive. He was the positive in this situation, one of the only positives I had. And the biggest positive in my life as well.

I paused a bit away from the house, looking behind me once more and see that I wasn't followed. I could see the house in front of me, small but it was still in one piece. This made me bend glad that I made it back to the group in one piece, and it was about to get darker. Snow was falling once over in the forest through the top of the trees onto the floor. I felt the snowflakes on my pale cheeks and red fingertips that were pressed against the wood bark of the tree I was leaning against. My energy was gone at that point, my temperature was dropping. But I was trying to make sure that I was going to make it to the house in one piece.

I walked across the open area towards the back of the house and tried to breathe, but it was harder than I thought. I felt the cool air hitting my cheeks and face as I heard the backdoor opening. I looked up, seeing people flooding out of the backdoor. They all looked at me, as if I was coming back from a year long trip. Carol shot a hand over her mouth as she placed her spare hand on Daryl's arm, who looked at me with wide eyes. Lori and Carl looked at me with shock, though Carl had a small smile on his face showing he was glad to see me. Lori let out a breath of relief as Rick's eyes went big. I knew their faces, all of their faces, but the one face that I was aching to see had the most fear and relief on his face, both at the same time. I saw him push past Daryl and Rick, flying down the steps and towards me. I smiled widely at the sight of him, almost falling to my knees in weakness and happiness by just seeing him.

"Katie!" He called out my name as he touched the snow, running through the terrain and reaching me halfway. I hugged him tightly, feeling him wrap one arm around my waist to pull me close to him and another arm snaking up to touch my shoulder blade. I felt his warmth in his touch, the warmth of both temperature and relief to be near him once more. I sighed in relief, knowing that I was fine and nothing was going to happen to me, not anymore.

We stayed still in the hug for awhile, having me see light snowfall around us and I pulled away from him, about to say something to him. Something, anything for him to know that he was all I thought about since I was away from him. But he surprised me, having me loose my sense of voice when he pressed his lips against me.

This kiss was something I never though he would initiate, given his quiet nature. The same nature that I admired and was attracted to. But none the less it was a surprise for me. It was a strong kiss, something a lover to give to the one he thought he lost forever. Or to a husband who saw saw wife only mere hours before but gave her the same affection. This was that kiss, strong and powerful. It was nothing I thought he would do, however all the doubts I had about him were long gone because of this kiss.

His hand was on my back of my head, the other still resting on my hip as he kissed me there in the snow. I was frozen for a moment, only a mere moment. I reacted a second later, placed my hands on his face to know that this was real, feeling his warm cheeks and the beat on his neck pulsating quickly. My heart was beating fast then ever before, my head getting lighter then before as I kissed him back slightly. When I did this, his hold on my tightened and I felt something bursting inside of me. Something twisted up in me, then exploding and making me realize.

I loved him.

He pulled away first and I opened my eyes. His almond shaped eyes, harboring his dark brown eyes made me think of warmth, safety, laughter, and mostly, home. He was home to me, home and love. He scanned my face for a mere second, his hand still holding my head close to him. I never dropped my hands from his neck, thinking of how cruel it would be that I would loose his touch.

"Are you okay?" He asked me, having seriousness in his eyes. But the thought of him asking me this, after giving me what seemed to be the best kiss in the whole world, that made me smile widely and bit my lower lip.

"I am now." I replied to him, seeing him smile widely at me, having me feel his fingers drumming against my lower back from our position.

"I was scared, Katie. I thought you were seriously hurt and that….you weren't going to make it back." He said to me in almost a hushed tone, also sounding broken at the same time. I shook my head as I stayed close to him.

"Why would you think that Glenn? You know me, I don't go out without a fight." I said to him in a sheepish tone, seeing him smile at me and nod his head.

"I know, but I was still scared that you weren't going to come back." He replied to me in the same broken tone as before. I tilted my head to the side, moving one of my hands from his neck to move a strand of hair away from his eyes.

"I would never leave you behind." I replied to him in almost a promising tone. What we just did was crazy, beyond crazy since it was in front of the group and in the middle of the grounds of a apocalyptic mess. But I wasn't thinking of that in that moment. The only thing I could think about was the fact that Glenn kissed me, in front of everyone, and that I enjoyed it.

I enjoyed it a lot.

"Katie." I heard behind us, and I looked beyond Glenn. I saw Jacob coming from behind T-Dog who had a smirk on his face. I moved a bit away from Glenn and watched as Jacob walked over to me, enveloping me in a hug. I hugged him back, his giant frame shielding me away from the view of the others. I looked from the side and saw Glenn walking back to the group as Jacob looked down at me, examining my face as he held my arms with his massive hands.

"Don't ever do anything like that again." He said to me, making me think of one of my older brothers when they would scold me from doing a stupid stunt. I smiled and laughed once, nodding my head as he smiled and hugged me once more. Just feeling his warmth made me shiver from the sudden temperature change. He pulled away and saw that I must of looked like a frozen popsicle.

"You're freezing, we need to get you warm." He replied to me, walking with me to the house. I didn't see Glenn anywhere with the group, he must of went inside the house without me seeing. But as I was ushered in, hearing everyone tell me what happened, I was still thinking of Glenn

And how he kissed me.

* * *

I took one long drink of my tea that Lori made me, after all of the questions were answered by me. Rick wanted me to get rest so I was resting in my parent's room. It was bigger than the other rooms, since there was a king side bed in there and a large window showing the falling snow outside, along with a smaller fireplace that was already giving the room a orange glow. I was wearing my old sweats, a long sleeved shirt and my hair was away in my usual dutch braid. I was quiet for awhile, thinking about all that happened with that day. Chasing rednecks away from the house and risking my own neck, trying to find my way back before I would freeze to death. But the worst was Glenn.

Glenn and his kiss.

That kiss was electrifying to me, making me think go fire soaring through my body in the cold temperature that I was in. Was he thinking about doing that when he saw me, or was it impulse? But Glenn would never act out ons emoting like that last minute, would he? It wasn't that I hated it, I enjoyed every part of it. The way he held me in the snow as as if he was protecting me from the world. But that kiss took the cake for my feelings for him, making me realize those doubts were in fact real.

"I thought you would be asleep." I heard from the door of the bedroom, having me look up from looking out the window and seeing Glenn stand at the door. He was wearing his usual clothes, his hair flipped out of his eyes and his face being seen from the glow of the fireplace on my right. I wanted to say something to him, anything to him that would bring about the kiss incident. But the only thing that I could do was smile at him and I shook my head.

"Too much stuff on my mind." I replied to him in a shrug as I watched him with my eyes. He walked over to stand next to the big bed I was sitting up in, shoving his hands in his pockets for a moment or two. But he said nothing, looking like he was trying to plan out what he was going to say in his head. He then, without going way too fast, sat down in front of me on the bed and was sitting Indian Style. He placed his hands on his knees, resting them there when he spoke up again.

"So…uh…how are you feeling?" He asked me, making me smile at him widely at how innocent he was trying to be. I scratched the back of my neck and cracked my neck in the process.

"I feel much better in warm clothes." I answered him, seeing him nod his head with a small smile on his face. I then sighed, knowing that I would have to give an explanation as to why I left the three of them behind in what seemed like a suicide mission.

"Look, I know what I did back there earlier today was….stupid beyond reason." I started with him, "But I only did it to make sure you guys weren't going to be followed and killed."

"So you decide to place your own life on the line as a substitute?" He asked me, knowing that we were about to have a fight about what did happened.

"You know me, Glenn." I countered back at him, "I told you how I am and that I protector people over myself."

"Which, may I say, is both sincere and bullshit at the same time." He replied back to him, having me sighed in defeat with his words that he chose to use, "I hate to say it, but I really don't like how you choose to put your own life on the line when others view your life as something worth fighting for." There was a paused then, having me see Glenn getting a bit frustrated about what we were talking about, thinking to himself once more as I stayed quiet.

"It killed me, seeing you run off and away from us. I wanted to go after you, and make sure those guys weren't going to do….anything to you." He paused before he said the last bit of his rant, having me feel something stir in my heart again for him. Something every warm, sincere and loving to him. I don't why I was suddenly feel like I was floating whenever we were together, since this afternoon. And that fact that he was telling me these things, in a time where this kind of talk was the last to talk about. He was telling me this, and I wanted to listen some more.

"And….what happened this afternoon…" He trailed off, having me breathe out finally from holding it in for moments.

"You kissed me, Glenn." I replied to him aloud, my voice was lighter than before when it was stained with hurt after he confronted me about my stunt. This time, it was lift because of the subject matter. He looked at me dead on in the eyes, no longer with darkness of the subject but lighter and warmer.

"I did." he replied aloud, having a small smile on his face from the thought of it, "To be honest, it was one thing I could think of doing in that moment. I mean, you came back in one piece and all that I was thinking about was your safety and if you were going to be okay." The way he spoke about it made me think that he was trying to tell me his true feelings, and was I ready for it.

"And if I am going to honest with you, I wanted to do that since you head butted Thomas." He said to me, making me look at him with at first confusion, but then with adoration. He was thinking of kissing me for awhile? Me, of all people? I was so opposite of a typical female, but that he was thinking of me made me reevaluate myself.

"I'm glad you did." I said to him after a moment of silence. He looked at me with wide eyes, as if I slapped him across the face. He smiled, breathing out a shaky breath and I smiled even bigger.

"Really?" I heard him ask me with lightness and sweetness in his voice. I nodded my head from my spot. Seeing him look down at his lap and stay quiet for a moment. I was glad we were on the same page, having me reach down and place my hand on top of his that was on his left knee. He looked down at our joined hands for a moment, before looking up at me. Just seeing his almond shaped eyes, how warm they were that reminded me of light chocolate, it made me feel fire going through me once more. I leaned in, pausing for a moment, before pressing my lips against his.

He was very still when I did this, but within an instant, I felt him squeeze my hand that was holding his. My other hand reached up towards his face, placing it on his cheek and feeling his hot skin against the palm of my hand. My eyes were closed, but I pictured him with his eyes closed as well, since this kiss was just as great as the first one in the snow.

He pulled away after a moment and looked at me, his eyes bigger than before but a smile was plastered on his face. I smiled back at him, already thinking that I was way in over my head.

But how great was that?


	18. I Promise

"Making breakfast I see." I looked behind me, seeing Jacob walking into the kitchen as I flipped some pancakes on the stove. It was early the next morning as I was wearing one of my old sweatshirts, a pair of boxers and my barefoot on the tile floor. My hair was in a messy bun and my bangs getting in the way of my cooking. Jacob walked over to stand next to me, rubbing his short brown hair through his fingers and leaning against the counter top. I saw the snow falling some more outside the house as the heater kicked in. The night before, after talking to Glenn what what happened, and ending up kissing him on the bed, I was still reeling over what had happened between us.

"I have trained you well, young grasshopper." I replied to him, imitating a karate instructor in my voice. He laughed from his spot and then fell quiet once more. I looked over at him, seeing a small smile on his face. I knew that smile, it was the same smile that he would give me when he was about to either embarrass me or call me out on something he knew. I waited for it, waited for the long lasting teasing that was about to consume.

"If you are about to talk to me about what happened between Glenn and I, I hope you don't." I replied to him, seeing him smile bigger as I knew I hit the jackpot.

"Oh come on, how long have we known each other? We all saw what happened yesterday." Jacob said to me, having me flip the pancake once more as he kept talking, "and we all saw it coming from a mile away."

"You saw him kissing me in the middle of the snow?" I asked him aloud in a smirk as Jacob snagged one of the already cooked pancake to shove it in his mouth and eat it within seconds.

"Totally did, and I for one find it cute that you two are together." He said in a musing tone of voice. I heard him chuckle as I eyed him from my spot. But I fell silent once more, thinking about the whole situation. I really did hope that this was the right thing that I was doing with Glenn, the real right choice.

"Seriously, Katie. What's going on in your brain?" He asked me, having me see a sincere look of curiosity on his face. He knew how to read my mind and my face, one of the fallouts of hiding things from him for years. But I knew I had to tell him what was going on in my mind.

"Is this the right thing to happen between us, right now in the middle of the apocalypse?" I asked him with concern in my voice. it was haunting me since I went to sleep that night, making me think that this was all a big mistake to do. What if something happened to one of us? Or the both of us? If he left with the group, where was that going to leave us?

"Look, even though this is the last place to start something like this, I know for a fact that Glenn is not one for letting things go and away from him. I've only the guy for so long, and the others have known him for longer than we have. But I don't think you should see this as a bad thing." Jacob explained to me, his sincere look was on his face and I could tell he was telling the truth. He was one to never lie to me, not once in our relationship as friends.

"Don't think of this as something that was a mistake, Katie. You and I both know that this was no mistake." Jacob said to me in more of an serious tone. He caught me on that note, I knew this was no mistake between Glenn and I. I smiled from my spot, having him see that I knew this was no mistake either. I placed the pancakes on the plate, joining the other pancakes that were already made.

"I really like him, Jacob." I said to him aloud in almost a sheepish tone of voice, "He keeps me sane in this whole shithole of a situation." Jacob nodded his head from my remark, having me hear something behind us and we both looked behind. I saw Glenn and Daryl walking into the kitchen, both fresh from the sleep that they had. As soon as I saw Glenn with his messy bed hair, I felt butterflies in my stomach go off. Jacob nudged me as he moved away from me and walked over to the coffee machine. Daryl sniffed the air and smiled from what he was smelling.

"You made breakfast?" He asked me aloud in a light tone. He walked over to the pancakes as I smiled at Glenn for one more second before tearing my eyes away from him to Daryl. I grabbed him a plate from the counter and handed it to him as Glenn followed suit behind him. I let my eyes flow back to Glenn as he grabbed a plate as well.

"Smells good." Daryl commented to me, giving me a big grin from his spot next to me. I smiled back at him as Glenn grabbed two pancakes from the plate.

"It looks good too." He replied to me, his voice was softer than Daryl's and Jacob's voice that morning. It made me smile bigger than normal just hearing his voice. I had my hands by my sides as I leaned against the counter, seeing Glenn walk past me and towards the coffee maker. But as he walked by, he grabbed my hand slightly in his without me seeing. I felt him grip my hand, a firm but gentle squeeze as I felt fire seeping through my fingertips touching his hand. He was trying to be sneaky with me in front of the others, and that made me wish I was alone with him for a moment or two. This new side of me, all because of him, made me go stir crazy.

"Rick wants to go back to the prison and get some more medicine supplies in case we run out here." Daryl explained to me, having me nod my head as I looked away from Glenn over to him. He drank a bit from his coffee and cracked his neck form his spot. I wanted to go back with them, seeing what the prison looked like. But then again, since my last incident I should stay at home this time and help out around the house. It was my house, and I wanted to contribute around the place.

"I'll stay behind and watch the house." I replied to the group, seeing them look at me with surprising eyes. I knew they were surprised that I was going to sit this one out. But I knew I was in hot water with some of them with my last stunt.

"Jacob, you want in?" Daryl asked aloud, having all of the room look at Jacob. Jacob looked at me, having me nod my head at him. I knew he was silently asking permission to go with them and leave the girls here at the house. He needed to be there for them in case something did happen. Since Glenn was going to go with them, I was now afraid that something was going to happen to him while he was there. However, I knew he could take care of himself. But why was I thinking about him in that way, fearing for him. Why now?

* * *

"Load up." Rick said aloud as he walked over to the red truck. Jacob carried the two bags over his shoulder and a shotgun in the other hand as I stood with Glenn at the bottom of the steps on the front porch. It was right after breakfast and going over the game plane, having all of the boy go to the prison and scrounge up any last minute things they forgot to get. I was fine up until that moment, thinking that they would be fine. But something inside of me snapped, something filled with fear. When I saw Jacob cock his shotgun and throw the bags in the bed of the truck, I grabbed Glenn's hand in mine and held it in a vine grip.

"We won't be gone for long Katie." He reminded me, holding my hand back and having me feel his thumb on the top of my hand stroking me. A way to try and calm me down. But I was still scared for him. Whatever happened in that kiss we had the night before, it as suddenly making me fear for him and his safety.

"It's not like I haven't done this before." Glenn said to me, placing a hand on my cheek to have me face him. I knew I looked petrified from what was going to happen, but I saw Glenn being so calm and collective. I hated him for a second because of how calm he was. But I knew he was right, he's done this before.

"I just don't want something to go wrong." I said to him in a low tone, thinking the others would hear me say that to him. He looked over at the truck, seeing the rest of the boys getting in the truck. He looked back at me, seriousness in his eyes as I felt him squeeze my hand one more time.

"I'm promising you, Katie, I'm coming back." He said to me, seriousness in his tone and determination. I could see he wasn't to push that statement with me, and I believed him. He pulled me into a hug and I hugged him back, clinging onto him and make sure I knew this whole thing was real. That this was no dream. When he pulled away he kissed my cheek lovingly, squeezing my hand one more time before pulling away form my completely and walking towards the red truck. He hopped onto the bed of the truck, looking over at me and smiling at me one more time. I smiled at him, seeing the truck drive off. No matter how many times i told myself that this was a typical job for us. This time it was different.

Because we were together.


	19. Operation Machete

I heard the walkie talkie buzzing from the living room as I was talking to Lori in the kitchen. It was later that day, about a couple of hours since the boys left for the prison, and I wanted to be occupied with busy work to get my mind off of what was going on at the prison. I knew they were going to be fine, but then again I wanted to be positive in the thought that Glenn was going to okay out there with the rest of the boys. I saw Lori walk over to the walkie talkie, having me go back to the food that we were making in the kitchen for lunch. I knew Carol was doing some laundry and Carl was keeping Zelda occupied in the front hall. I could hear Carl laughing and Zelda barking with him. It made me smile in that one moment that everything was going okay. BUt it wasn't until I heard what was going on, on the other line made my heart drop.

"Lori, Lori we need help." I heard harshly the sound of Rick on the other end of the walkie talkie. I looked behind me at the device as Lori placed it to her ear.

"What is it?" She asked aloud into the talkie. I walked over from the kitchen to hear what was going on, having me hear Carl get up from sitting on the floor of the front hall.

"We are running low on ammo and we got the rest of it, but we are no being surrounded by Walkers and I think he rednecks from earlier found us." He explained into the talkie as I looked at Lori in horror, "If we don't get out of here soon we'll be dead by nightfall."

"How many Walkers are there?' Lori asked into the talkie, trying to keep her voice from sounded like she was afraid for their lives. She was trying to hold it together with Carl in the room, but I knew she was petrified.

"There has to be at least 20 of them, and more are coming." Rick explained to us, having me think to myself on how they can get out of there. I tried to get the picture of Fort Benning in my head, how it was structured and where they can get in and out in one piece. It took be back to when I was younger, maybe 13 years old when I took a tour of the place with my father. He showed me all of the places inside, where the officers stayed and the big field. But something struck in my head as I knew another way they could get out.

"Rick, can you hear me?" I asked in the talkie, Lori holding the talkie close to me so I can speak.

"I hear you Katie, you have an idea?" he asked me aloud.

"I do, but you'll think it's crazy." I said to him aloud. I heard nothing on the other line for a moment or two, but then he spoke up.

"I'm listening."

I biked by way up the steep hill that was East of the Fort Benning, my machete in the holster on my hip and a shotgun strapped onto my back. I was going back in dangerous territory and I knew this time they were counting on me. ALl of them were, since it took some convincing on my part to tell them that this was going to have to work. Either that, or let them die in there.

Not a chance.

* * *

The road was slippery as I biked up, but I was used to the terrain from the slippery roads of New York in the Winter season. This was no different as I pushed harder through the ice on the road and kept my balance from falling over. My fingers were gripping the handles tightly, since I was wearing fingerless gloves that I would usually wear on the job. Once again my hair was braided back dutch style in a messy bun and I was wearing my hoodie with a jacket over it, boots and slim pants. I was ready for anything that was coming.

Getting to the top of the hill, I looked down to see the Fort in front of me. The fort was completely deserted, only the wind was coming through the area and I could see light snow on the floor of the big field in the middle of the area. But I pulled out the binoculars from my backpack that I was wearing, looking around for where Rick said he was. I scanned to the right, seeing instantly the swarm of Walkers hitting on the door that was leading to the West Wing of the facility. They were behind that door and they were looking for a way out. I placed the binoculars back and looked down the hill a bit to see where it was: the hatch.

My father, according to what he told me and what I heard from my brothers, said that there was a hatch that went underground and into the facility, going up and into one of the rooms in the South Wing. This tunnel was in case there was a evacuation that had to be hasty and I was glad I remembered it. Rick told me that they parked the truck a bit away so that it would not be seen by anyone else, so that wasn't a issue. What was an issue, was they they had no way of getting out.

Before I could even think about going back, my foot slipped underneath me and I fell, my bike still beneath me since I never dismounted. I slipped on the ice on the hill down the hill faster than ever, me trying to grab onto branches of trees that were flying past me. I could see in front of me, about 30 feet away and approaching at high speed, was a 18 wheeler truck. It looked abandoned on the side of the hill since someone drove it off the highway and left. It parked horizontal to me, making me think that I was going to crash it. But I pushed the bike down from being between my legs and wrapped my feet around one of the body bars. Before the truck could hit me, I pushed myself to the floor, sliding underneath the truck without being hit. And, as I was about to emerge on the other side, I grabbed a pipe that was underneath the truck and I hung one for dear life. My feet wrapped around the body of the bike grabbed it before it slid away from me, but I felt the bike drop as I emerged on the other side from the belly of the truck.

There I was, hanging by a pipe that was underneath a 18 wheeler, and my bike was hanging off a cliff with my feet to hold onto it, and my arms were holding me up from falling to a broken leg. I was shaking in that moment, thinking of how close I was to loosing my leg, or even my life. But I sighed in relief as I used my upper body strength to pull the bike and myself up from the edge of the cliff. Looking up, I saw that I was closer to the Fort, but nothing or no one heard me. Thank God, thankful no one heard me and ran after me. I climbed my way back underneath the truck and out the way I came in, scooting myself on the ice and pulling my bike out with my feet while clinging onto it. When it was clear enough, I threw the bike away from me and fell back on the floor, breathing in and tried to find my strength once more. That whole ordeal along made me scared that I was about to die, and I didn't even break into the Fort yet.

I turned my body to lay on my belly and face the hill upwards where I slid, thinking of how Iw as going to find the hatch then. But I looked to my left instead, seeing my bike laying on the icy grass, next to what looked like the abandoned hatch that was rusting over. I smirked from my spot.

So far so good.

* * *

I landed on my feet and the tips of my fingers as I dropped from the top of the ladder that was four feet above the ground. The tunnel was wide enough to fit a truck in, and it was colder than it was on the surface. The emergency lights were off, seeming dead as I got out my big flashlight from my pack. Turning it on I walked down the tunnel towards the South Wing, running as fast as I could and hearing my footsteps echo in the tunnel. If I remembered correctly, The stairs going into the room of the South Wing was coming up close, praying that what I remembered was correct. I saw the door, on the right side and I approach it. From what I saw, it was still in tact, no one was trying to get in or out. I pulled it open, seeing the winding staircase that went up. I aimed my flashlight up towards the top of the stairs, and I could see the sliver of light from the door that was there. I ran up the steps, two steps at a time and opened the door.

It was might lighter than before when I was in darkness, and I pushed it open and another door leading into the main hallway. As I got into the main hallway, I pulled out my machete in my hand incase I ran into a WAlker. I went to the left, down a few paces, and then down the hallway to the right. At this point, I was praying that I made it in time to get those boys out of there in one piece. I knew Glenn made the promise to me, the promise that he would come back to me. His promise to me was something I would never take for granted.

I hears gunshots on my left, making me skid to a halt from running and I looked in the direction of the sound. Down the hallway at the very end, I saw two Walkers trying to get into the room that was barricaded in. I ran as fast as I could, thinking of nothing else to do but Scream to get their attention away from the door. They looked at me, snarling as I threw the machete at one right on the skull. I immediately threw the machete off of the Walker that fell to the floor in a heap and swiped at the second, chopping his head off completely in one go. It took only 3 seconds, but to me it felt like eternity.

Two walkers were dead on the floor as the doors were thrown open. I saw the boys there, all with guns at the ready and they all looked like they went through hell and back. I smiled at him, sticking the first Walker in the head with my machete and keeping it there as I found my breath once more. I saw Rick, his face of pure fear that he wasn't going to get out alive. And then Daryl and T-Dog, their tough glances at me had a sense of relief. And Lastly, Glenn. His face was with pure adrenaline and rush, but once we locked eyes I knew we both had the same thought. We both were safe. I placed my hands on my hips, facing them all with my smile and out of breath tone.

"Ya'll missed me?"


	20. I'll Take That

Rick reload his gun and there one of the duffels over his shoulders as I walked over to Glenn, giving him a big hug. He hugged me back, having me pull away and see that he was hardly hurt from anything I was grateful, but I could see on the top of his right arm he was bleeding. Instantly, I picked up his hand to look at the wound, healing him hiss as I did this.

"Sorry." I said to him in a soothing tone, seeing him shrug as I looked up at him.

"I sliced it on the rusted door getting in here, If I was slower they would go bit me." Glenn said aloud to me as I threw my backpack on the floor and dug threw it. I hoped I had something for him, anything, to give him some ease. I felt a bandana in my grasp, puling it up and showing it to him. He raised a eyebrow at me.

"Is that even clean?" He asked me aloud as I started to wrap his hand in the bandana. I snorted from my spot, looking over my shoulder to see Jacob getting the other duffle bag on his shoulders.

"Don't be a baby." I replied back to him, tying it on the top and seeing him smile. I was glad that he was alright, only suffering from a scratch. I looked back at the rest of the group to see how they were doing, all of them getting their gear ready to go and guns out and loaded.

"Can you lead us back to the bunker?" Rick asked me aloud, having me nod my head at him as I threw my backpack back on. I was willing and ready to run once more, though I knew my energy was going slowly but surely. This was more important than myself, getting everyone back in one piece.

"It's only down the hall to the right. It's really not far from here and we can get out of here fast." I explained to him, looking back out the crack of the door and seeing the hall once more. But as I looked I saw that there were more Walkers coming our way. They must of heard us, and I could count at least ten of them.

"There's more of them coming." I said aloud in a warning tone. I looked back to the group, seeing them all get ready to go through the next line of fire.

"We go in, get out fast and get back to the Manor. Everyone stay close and savor your ammo." Rick explained to us as I heard Daryl cock his crossbow in hand. I moved away form the door and got my machete in hand, walking over to Glenn and feeling him grab my hand for a moment or two. I felt him squeeze my hand, knowing that we were going to go through another battlefield of Walkers coming our way. This was another day in my life, another massacre that I had to be apart of. I wasn't as sacred as I thought I was going to be, since we had more numbers. I went from fighting only with Jacob to fighting with a smaller army.

"We ready?" Rick asked us aloud, having his hand on the door. We all had our guns out, aiming at the door I took in a deep breath, clutching my machete in hand as he threw the door opening. I heard nothing but firing going on around us as we all ran out of the room. I threw my machete out at one of the Walker's heads as Glenn blew off the Walker's head that was next to me, having me dodge one Walker's arm from getting me in the face and swiping up to get him back in the face. I saw the front of his face fly off from my slicing, having me duck from getting the remains on my own face.

"Keep pressing forward!" Rick said over the chaos that was happening in that hallway. We were getting them to go backwards s they were dwindling from 20 to 10, then to 5. I kept looking around to see if the others were going along okay from their spots. And as the last Walker fell to the floor in a heap, I placed the machete in my holster.

"We need to go before more come because of the noise." Daryl said aloud from his spot, getting the extra arrows for his crossbow. They all started to follow me as I showed them the way back to the stars leading to the tunnel. We were all in a bolted run at that point, having me skid to a halt in front of the door that lead to the stairs. I threw it open and looked down the stairs, grabbing my flashlight once again and shining it down for the group to see. I could see they were all looking over my shoulder, and T-Dog was the first to pipe up.

"How did you know about this again?" he asked me in curiosity and a bit out of breath. I smiled, looking back at him.

"My snuck up here once in awhile to see where I father was when I was little." I replied back to him, starting the trek down the steps, "Daryl, barricade the door from the inside so no one out there will get in."

"Got it." Daryl said aloud as we got deeper and deep into the tunnel. As I took the last step down, I opened the next door leading into the main tunnel and had the group pile out. I waited in the room as I looked up, seeing Daryl coming down the stairs two steps at a time. As soon as he got to my level, we both paused and looked up, hearing groaning on the other side of the door. Daryl threw up a finger in front of his lips to make sure we were all silent. I had my flashlight down, in case the light would bounce up there for them to see through the crack of the door. We silently got out of the room and into the main tunnel with the rest of the group.

"We need to move quick, more Walkers are coming in." Daryl said to the others as I ran down the tunnels, the boys after me. Our footsteps were echoing in the tunnel, multiple this time making it louder. I could feel the cold weather seeping through once more from the outside world, having me clutch the jacket that I was wearing once more with my fingers.

"How did they get in?" I heard Glenn ask aloud from right behind me.

"Those goons must of let them in to get us out." Daryl replied in a huff.

"Whatever the case is, I don't think we'll be coming back for awhile. Not unlit they all leave the area and go off for food somewhere else." Jacob said from his spot on my left. I saw the ladder, elevated a bit from the ground and I was skidding to a halt. I aimed the flashlight up the ladder, seeing the hatch on the other end high in the air and ceiling. I cracked my knuckle on my spare hand, placing the flashlight in my pocket facing up to give me light and hopped up, grabbing the ladder with ease with both hands. I pulled myself up and started to climb.

"I'll stay last and make sure no one is after us." Rick said aloud as I climbed deeper and deeper into darkness. I felt more and more people hopping up on the ladder and climbing behind me, but I kept the fast pace and pushed the hatch open with a grunt. I was instantly greeting by the light from the outside world, along with the freezing cold. I shivered for a moment or two, but I got out of the hatch and moved out of the way for the others to pile. Each one shivered from the new coldness hitting them as I went over to the pile of leaves that my bike was hiding under. I pulled out the bike as everyone got out and Rick threw the hatch down. We all stood there, trying to breathe in and out from what happened in the past 5 minutes. BUt we all then looked back at the view of the Fort.

We could see more Walkers coming into the area, trying to get into the door that they group was once behind. I placed my hands on my knees, trying to breathe better since I was practically running for my life back there. But we were safe then, making me glad that we got out in one piece. However, another though lured into my mind as we left the area.

How long can we keep this up? How long can we be hidden and safe?

* * *

"Hold still." I said to him as I placed the gauze over his wounded hand and started wrapping it carefully. Glenn and I were sitting on my parent's bed once more, a bit after we came back to the house will all of the ammo that we could carry. Rick and the rest of the group was beyond glad to be back to the house in one piece. We all knew that going back to the Fort anytime soon was far too risky, even though we knew how to get in and out in one piece and not having a drop of blood falling.

"Thank God this wasn't a Walker." I said to him as I tied the end of the gauze on the top of his hand. Glenn nodded his head as I looked back up at him, seeing some of his hair in his eyes. I moved it away with a few of my fingers. Just feeling his smooth skin against my fingers made my own skin crawl, having me glad that we had another moment alone together.

"Yeah, but I did get more scratched from running around and cutting corners." He said aloud to me, having me watch him as he squinted from moving his left side. He must of taking a beating from all of the running from Walkers, and I could tell he was beyond tired.

"You okay?" I asked him aloud, seeing him grab his side and had some pain in his eyes. I saw him take off his shirt in front of me. I felt very embarrassed at that point, seeing Glenn shirtless in front of me on my bed, having me think that this was in fat awkward. I wanted to look away, thinking that it was rude to stare at him. But then again I wanted to look, since it was in fact Glenn. I knew I was becoming more and more attractive to him, and since he was shirtless in front of me it was hard _not _to look.

I could see the massive bruise on the left side of his rib, bruising to a good color of black and blue. It was about a large size and I could see why he was in pain. The contrasting blue and black against his pale skin made me think of him in so much pain. I was trying to find my voice once more from the awkward pause. I could tell Glenn felt the awkward pause as well, since he cleared his throat after the minute of silence.

"It's uh….pretty bad huh?" Glenn asked aloud in a sheepish tone. I smiled slightly, finally looking back to the bruising on his ribcage. I placed a couple of my fingertips on the surface of the bruise and I could feel the shutter that was going through him. He wasn't build like a muscle maniac, nor was he just a stick. He had muscles, but they weren't clearly visible. I could tell he was fit because of all of the running away from Walkers and killing them along with way.

"This will only last for maybe a few weeks at the least." I replied back to him, feeling him place his spare hand on my bare shoulder as I was still staring at his bruise. I was trying hard not to panic at what was going on between us. But he was touching me in a more intimate moment that we were sharing. From the previous times we would be together alone, whether it was talking about what we wanted to do after the Apocalypse, and even playing checkers. But this, this was different.

"I guess having a big bruise like this will make me cool, huh?" He asked me in a light tone. I could tell he was trying to defuse what we both wanted to say or do to each other. But then again, when I looked back up at him, I smiled widely at him.

"Well, you're already a badass, and this takes the cake." I replied to him in a grin, hearing him chuckle in front of me. His hand was still on my bare arm, having me feel more butterflies in my stomach. I was glad that we had a moment alone together, not being bothered by the rest of the house and not having lingering eyes. His hand moved from my shoulder, slowly and surely. I tried to stay still to know that this was no dream, that what I was feeling in my pit of my chest was in fact flutters and nothing else. He rested his hand on my cheek, noticing the scratches on my neck and cheek from the day's adventure. Even being in front of him, all vulnerable, it made me feel so exposed. But this is Glenn, of all people, why would I feel like this in front of him?

"Told you I was going to make it back in one piece." Glenn said in a joking tone, but his voice was soft. I could tell he was making it a soft tone since it was only the two of us there alone in the bedroom. I only smiled at him, thinking of how right he was.

"I know." I replied back to him, seeing him smile softly at me and I felt him trace my cheek with his fingers, "And I'm glad you did, because if you didn't, then I would of slugged you." I said to him, hearing him chuckle as he leaned in to almost kiss me. Just seeing him lean in towards me made me feel all jumpy inside once more.

"I'll take my chances next time." He said to me in almost a murmur before he pressed his lips against mine. If he was going to take the chance, so be it.

I'll let him, even if it meant me kissing him senseless.


	21. Brought Me Life

Days were morphing together, but the feeling of warmth was flooding through our house. Weeks went by, and we were content with where we were. It was only a matter of time when we were going to have to figure out our next move. A sense of familiarity was flooding through the house, going out in the morning and getting supplies, staying inside in the evening. Our lives were getting used to the fact that we had one home together.

Lori and Carol taught me some cooking, since when I was in college I lives off the simpler things in life and nothing too great and lavish. It was nice to learn some things from the girls, better than going off to shoot at random things with the boys.

I would spend time a lot with Glenn, away from the group and having our own time together when it was nighttime after dinner. The group caught on with the fact that we were both together and they kept their distance from us, except for T-Dog who would wink at us. But I didn't mind sneak away with Glenn, going around corners in the hallways to steal kisses. Or sometimes we would stare at each other longer than usual when we would be out and about with the group. The more we were together, the more I knew it was going to hurt when we would have to decide on departure. I tried to not think of that moment, pushing it to the back of my mind and not thinking about it so much anymore.

Sometimes I thought of going out to find my parents, though I knew nothing about their whereabouts. The only thing I knew was they were out west to find my brother, and I hoped that they were still out there. I had to only hold onto the small hope that they were still alive, though a part of me thought of them dead. Was I was the only Marshburn alive still?

"What are you thinking about?" Glenn asked me aloud as we both were sitting outside on the front porch. It was still snowing at the house, though it was lighter than the previous days at the house. I was wrapped in a tartan blanket, my hair pulled back in a ponytail and leaned my head on Glenn's shoulder. His arm was wrapped around my shoulders and I felt a kiss in my hair from him.

"My family and where they would be." I replied back to him. It was still sore to think about them, wondering how they would fight again Walkers.

"You don't think they're still alive out there somewhere?" Glenn asked me in curiosity. I wrapped my own arms around my stomach to get more warmth, though I was still in the blanket.

"I still think they are, but who knows at this point." I answered him back, feeling his arm on my shoulder rubbing me up and down. It was a soothing motion, making me feel a bit better about the situation. But I hated talking about it with Glenn, it made me feel so negative and sad.

"At this point, you need to stay positive about it not loose that." Glenn explained to me as I scooted closer to him, "And think of it this way, they would be proud of you for keeping this house in one piece since you haven't been here since you were 18." I knew he was right, and the more I thought of it the more it was easier to have settled in my heart. I breathed in deeply, the cool crisp air going through my system and making me shiver slightly. I had another thought in my head, looking up at Glenn from my spot and seeing him look down at me.

"What are you going to do, after all of this is over?" I asked him aloud, curious as to what he was going to do. He looked down at me with a raised eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" He asked me in a light tone, after the one serious moment we had.

"Come on, you know what I mean. When all the Walkers are dead and things go back to normal." I explained to him, seeing him think to himself for a moment. I wanted to know what was going on in his head, though we would talk about random things throughout the day. The more I got to know him, which was plenty about him, the more there was in his brain that I didn't know.

"I would probably go to a island somewhere." He replied aloud, having me look at him with surprise.

"Really? Why an island?" I asked him aloud, seeing him look right at me once more with his bright brown eyes, "To be more isolated from the rest of the world?"

"No." He replied in a snort, having me giggle from my spot, "ONly to know that I don't have to look over my solder and make sure that I don't die."

"Fair enough." i replied aloud, hearing him laugh next to me.

"And if it helps, I'll take you with me." Glenn said aloud to me, having me smile from my spot and feeling him kiss my hair once more, "And it'll only be you and me on an island. Away from Walkers, shotguns, and machetes."

"Because nothing says bliss like no machetes." I said in a grin and knew he was smiling from my response, "What do you think? Australia?"

"Maybe near Africa." Glenn said aloud like he was inspiration, "Or even Hawaii."

"And I can't bring my machete?" I asked in almost a groan, looking up at Glenn and pouting my lip.

"No, none for you when we are alone." Glenn said aloud, having me sit up from him and face him fully in my spot in the chair. Glenn smiled as he moved his hair out of the way and faced me as well.

"And we can actually go swimming in the ocean." I said to him with a big grin, already picturing it in my mind and Glenn grinning as he moved my bangs away from my eyes with his fingers.

"I'm not a pretty good swimmer, you'll have to teach me." He said to me aloud, having me bit my lower lip from trying not to laugh. His smile never left his face as he grabbed my spare hand and rested it on his kneecap in between us.

"I know all there is when it comes to swimming, you're in good hands. As long as you teach me how to dance." I said to him in persuasive tone of voice. He smiled at me with a tilt from his head.

"I can't dance." He said in defense, but with a smile and lightness in his face.

"Oh please, I bet you can dance better than anyone of us here at the house." I challenged him and he made a face of disgust at me. I couldn't help but laugh at his remark, though childish, it was nice for me view. I gave him a quick kiss on the lips, feeling him squeeze my hand in his as I kissed him on the front porch. Before I could even react, I heard a wolf whistle behind us and we pulled away. Glenn looked behind me and I looked past him, seeing Daryl look at us with a raised eyebrow. He was walking up the step to the front door with Carol behind him, who smacked him playfully on the side of his head. He gave her a playful glare and then looked back at the both of us.

"You two can't get a room?" He asked us in a light tone, though we knew he was playing.

"Can't you keep a lid on it for once?" Glenn asked aloud both light and a hint of annoyance. Daryl merely smiled and waved us off, walking into the house with Carol behind him. Glenn turned back to me and then pointed with his thumb behind him, having a annoyed face on.

"I wonder how I was able to put up with him for all this time." Glenn said aloud in wonder, having me smile back at him as he was still thinking about he just said. I loved that about him, how he would think of little things hat really didn't seem like a bother.

"It is such a hard knock life for you." I joked with him, seeing him poke my side and make me squirm in my chair in front of him. This one moment that I was having with him, the moment of pure bliss. Even though we were in the middle of the apocalypse, going through the motion of trying to stay alive in a morbid life, and learning how to find oneself, I was sane with Glenn. He made the moments of fear become moments of joy, happiness, content and love. Through every conversations we would have, every hug we would give each other before we would go to our respective rooms for bed, and every kiss we would sneak in behind closed doors, it was all worth it. I was craving more of his touch against my skin, his lingering and passionate kisses he would give me against the wall in an abandoned room, and the simplest hand holding. He made my life more bearable.

He brought me life in my own life.


	22. Booby Trap

I fired one shot, hitting a Walker right in the head and seeing him fall to the floor in front of us. I was standing in the middle of the forest with T-Dog, having a bit of shooting practice with him. Another month went by at the house and we were getting by little by little. Food was running low in our regular area, though we got by with some of the food Daryl would shoot. The rest was up to Glenn, Jacob and I, think we are the fastest ones in the group. Jacob and I had the bikes, and Glenn only had his fast feet underneath them that lived up to his potential. But the farther we went for food, the more serious it was getting because of the fact we were going to have to leave in order to find food.

Carol, however, was thinking more of making a garden for us to grow our own food. I grabbed seeds from the gardening store for her, and Carl would help her with the garden in order to stay close to Lori and out of trouble. Things were becoming routine in the house, going from one task to another and not having anything surprising coming after us. It made me anxious, thinking of something ever was going to come up in our lives that would stir up the pot. One of those factors was in fact the band of Rednecks who were still out there. I never saw them since I ran them away from the house, and it made me think that they were still alive. Where were they? Should we be concerned when we went outside?

It's been two months, going on three, since the Atlanta group came to our home and I was glad they were here. Others wouldn't like having wanderers to come with them in the fear of slowing down or being too loud, too dangerous. But with this group, they knew how to run and fight to survive. I've learned so much from them, even though it's only been 3 months.

"Nice shot." T-Dog said aloud to me and I looked over to him. He smiled at me, having one hand in his front pocket and the other holding his pistol in his hand. I placed the gun in my back pocket and smiled right back at him.

"It's nice to practice every once in awhile." I said to him as I heard his walkie talkie buzzing in his back pocket. We were in the outskirts of town were Glenn and Rick were getting supplies in a hardware store, one town over from the town we were in. Daryl stayed behind at the house with the rest of the group, since we knew we didn't need so many people on this supply run. Thankfully T-Dog and I were lookouts in case something went wrong while they were on the job.

"Because Lord knows you need the practice." T-Dog said aloud to me, having me sneer at him in a playful grin.

"Hey, I'm perfect at the machete. But with a gun, I'm still a bit rusty." I explained to him, seeing him shake his head as we both started to walk over to the area where the group was at. I knew we weren't supposed to shot guns, since it would attract Walkers over to us and that would be more trouble. Looking up in the sky I saw the sun coming through, though there was still snow coming down. But spring was coming around and the snow was slowly starting to melt.

"Better to know now than down the road." T-Dog said to me in a huff and I smiled at the remark he gave me. Before he could say something else I heard a voice over the radio. T-Dog grabbed the talkie and held it out for the both of us to hear.

"T-Dog, Katie, come back to the store. We have the supplies. Let's roll out." Rick said to us and we both bolted into a run, heading over as fast as we can. I was glad that we got in and out in one piece. We were only a jog away from the store and as we got there, I saw the front door open and Rick's voice traveling out from the inside. We both ran over and got inside, feeling the coolness of the room and breathing in the smell of hardwood floor and paint. Rick was getting the duffel bag and Glenn had the other one in hand. I walked over to him and grabbed his spare hand in mine, feeling him squeeze my hand back.

"It's less than what we wanted, but it's that or nothing at all." Rick explained to us as I looked over at him, seeing him a bit disappointed at what they found. I was about to say something when I saw something moving around the corner near the front of the store. It was moving, very slowly and very carefully. It was as if it a hiding and not trying to make noise. Slowly I moved away from Glenn and towards the object, it almost looked like the side of an foot.

"I bet there's another store in town that we can find before the day is out." T-Dog said aloud to him in a offering tone of voice. Bless him for being the one to look on a better things in life, though I was getting closer and closer to what was hiding from us. I could still hear them moving things around behind me, but I was still too occupied.

"Katie?" I heard behind me, knowing that it was Glenn. I didn't reply back to him, looking right around the corner and then moving backwards. I saw a Walker, right in front of us was a Walker propped up against the wall with an arrow sticking through his head, right through the left eye. I knew that it wasn't one of Daryl's arrows, and it looked rather fresh. How is it that no one else saw this when they came into the store? I had no clue, but as I took one more step towards the Walker, I heard something click underneath my foot. Without thinking, I looked down and saw that my foot was right in the middle of a trap. And I just had it set off.

Oh crap.

Within a second, the snare tightened around my ankle, and I fell back onto my back as the wire pulled me towards the left side of the store. My head slammed against the marble floor and I instantly screamed from the fast speed of my body flying towards wherever the wire was taking me.

"Katie!" Glenn yelled at me and was running after me, having me look back and seeing him upside down coming after me.

"Glenn, get me out of this!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, feeling myself going past the Walker and a heap, feeling it being pushed to the side because of my body. I kept my eyes on Glenn, rolling to be on my belly and reaching out to him. I looked back to the direction that I was flying, and saw a door coming my way. The wire was underneath the door, still rolling and I covered my head as I made impact with the door. Thankfully they were pushed door,s having fly through and somehow fly in the air. I felt the ground leave me as I was now upside down. I heard something behind me being sealed shut, almost like a bar over the door.

Finally, I opened my eyes and saw myself upside down and saw the only source of light coming from the window high above near the ceiling. It was a rather large room and I heard nothing at first. But then, I heard the one sound that I hated.

Walkers.

I gasped below me as I saw at least 30 Walkers all below me, looking up at me and then reaching for me, groaning and barely missing me. I was barely out of their reach from them, having me look up and see the wire painfully around my ankle and attached to something in the high ceiling. Near the top of the ceiling there was a walkway near my wire, now making sense to me. This was a set up for someone to get killed. Whoever did this was smart, very smart. And now, how was I going to get out of here?

"Katie?! Katie can you hear me?" I heard on the other side of the blocked door. It was Rick and I tried to think of how to get out of this. But my ankle was about to bleed from the wire digging into my skin and I was trying to get my upper strength.

"Rick!" I yelled out aloud, hearing the groan that the Walkers were giving out, "Rick get me out of here!" I was starting to panic as to if I was going to get out of this one alive. I felt like my breath was coming up short from the sheer thought, for the first time I had no clear way of getting out.

"We're gonna get you out, hang on Katie!" Rick yelled back at me as I pulled myself up, using any upper body that I had, and clung onto the wire. The ankle that was being abused but he wire was now bleeding and the blood was dripping down onto the Walker. I started to pull myself up, but my strength was slowly started to deteriorate. I prayed to God that I was going to get out of this one alive. How was it that I ended up in this, hanging by a literal wire and so close to dying at the hands of Walkers. Way to be the damsel in this situation.

"Katie!" I heard above me. I looked up and saw that it was Glenn, pulling me up the wire. I was so glad to see him. He was pulling me up, little by little as I felt a Walker barely touching my arm, making me scream out.

"Hurry Glenn!" I said to him, feeling myself go higher and higher. I then saw T-Dog and Rick coming put to help him. I was going faster, having me look down again and see the Walker going farther and farther away from them.

"Hang on Katie!" Glenn said to me, having me feel the pain going through my ankle and making me quench in pain as I got closer and closer to the group. Before I knew it I felt Glenn grabbed my leg. I felt two more pairs of hands on my leg and I was pulled up sharply over a railing. Glenn immediately wrapped his arms around me and I hugged him tightly, trying to breathe in deeply. I was hyperventilating, Glenn trying to pull me away from the railing and Rick getting the wire off my foot.

"Did you get bit?" Glenn asked me in a rushed tone, pulling away and looked at my face in examination. I shook my head, still trying to take a deep breath but it was becoming all shaky and rapid. He kissed my forehead and hugged me one more time, having me clutch him and almost break down into tears. He saved my life, making me love him even more and not want to let him go. I was so close to being killed by some booby trap.

"Whoever did this." T-Dog said aloud, having all of us look down at all of the Walkers that were reaching out to us. Their groans filled the room, and I sense of being safe came back to me. even though my ankle was bleeding onto the floor from the wire, and Glenn holding me close, I was beyond glad that it was over.

"They wanted us dead."


	23. Don't Let Me Go

"Keep pressure off your ankle." Carol explained to me, wrapping the rest of the gauze around my ankle and and tying it off at the top of the ankle. Right when we got back from the hardware store, I was given to Carol, thanks to Glenn and T-Dog carrying me to the living room and having the ankle looked at. There was a thin line of blood around the ankle where was wound was, a deep cut from how deep the wire went into my ankle. Jacob grabbed the supplies from the bathrooms as Carole examined the wound from in front of us, kneeling down as I was sitting on the couch. While she was doing this, I was still trying to calm down from what happened to me, how fast it happened and that fact that I could of died.

"It would of gone deeper, you would of had an infection. Thankfully, it was a clean cut." Carol said aloud, having me smiled in relief to her as I saw Rick stand next to me and Jacob behind her. In fact, the whole group was there and they wanted to know what happened.

"Thanks Carol." I said to her, feeling Glenn take my hand in his and squeeze it with affection. Carol smiled and stood up completely, having me see Rick squat down in front of me and look up at me with his stormy eyes.

"You okay?" He asked me aloud, having me take a deep breath and try not to out in front of him.

"Not really." I replied back to him in a cool tone, seeing him being taken a bit back but none the less nodding his head.

"We're going to figure out who did this, and we're going to do it fast." He said to me in reassurance. I knew he meant well, but I was still thinking back to the point that I was hanging upside down and almost getting myself killed. I saw Jacob pull Rick and T-Dog to the side in the kitchen to talk to them, Carol going with Daryl to the front room, and Lori with Carl leaving the room. I breathed out a shaky breath and felt Glenn place a hand on my upper back, rubbing it in a soothing manner.

"Hey." He said to me, his voice was low but soft. I looked over at him, seeing him search my eyes and see that I was actually doing oaky. But I was still going along the fear, not being able to let it go.

"You okay?" He asked me, asking me in a sincere way. Even though it was the same question Rick asked me, I was having the wrong answer with Glenn. I shook my head and I felt ears coming down my face. My ankle, propped up on a pillow on the flow was throbbing at this point from the pain, but my images of what was going to be my death was worse.

"I can't stop thinking about it….how I was almost killed." I said to him in a shaky tone, trying to find my breath but my tears were falling them. Glenn immediately framed my face in his hands and had me look at him completely. His thumbs whipped away my tears in a soothing motion and I knew this was first time he saw me broken, completely broken.

"You don't need to have it all together all the time." he said to me, having me feel more tears coming down my face, "You just went through hell and back, stop being so strong Katie" I knew he was calling me out my thick skin and my tough exterior. I was glad he was doing this, calling me out when he would of just soothed me for being alive. Glenn and I were real with each other, beyond real.

"It's okay, you're okay now. I have you Katie." He said to me, pulled me towards him and kissing a falling tear on my cheek. I sighed in defeat as he kissed my bare shoulder, resting his head against it and having me grab his back with my spare hand, in attempt to pull him closer. My head went to his shoulder, more tears coming out as he rested a hand on the back of my neck and his other arm going around my middle and holding me there. I never cried in public, it was a foreign thing for me. But with Glenn, since he called me out on my bullshit, he knew that I needed a release.

"Don't let me go, Glenn." I said in a mere whisper, having my eyes closed and thinking back to when I thought I was going to die. It was a hard thing to forget, hanging upside down at the hands of 30 Walkers and so close to death it was a breath away. I could still feel the wire around my ankle, digging into my flesh to show that I was human but not for long. I don't why I said that to him in that moment, maybe to reassure myself that what we both had for each other was real. That he wasn't going to let me go under any circumstances and threats. If there was ever a bad time, or good time for that matter, to be in a relationship, it was now.

"I'll never let you go, Katie. I won't let you go." He said to me in reply, almost a mumble into my shoulder. I felt his lips move against my skin and I felt more tears seeping through my eyelids and onto his shirt. We had one small serious moment between us, since I was close to death and close to loosing him forever. I hated that thought, since he came into my life in a flash and made it possible to get through this ordeal.

* * *

I fell asleep, somewhere from holding Glenn close and having a hot cup of tea thanks to Lori. But when I woke up, I felt myself being wrapped in someone's arms. Blinking a few times, I saw that I was in my own bed, but I wasn't alone. There was one arm wrapped around my middle, and my hand was enclosed with the hand that was attached to that arm. My other arm was wrapped around this arm, holding him close. I was facing the window, seeing that it was already night fall and the light snow was coming over the house once more. SLowly, since I didn't want to disturb, I maneuvered my body and the arm draped around me, and I moved to be on my other side, facing the opposite way. My ankle was still in pain, but not as much anymore since it was wrapped up and I was on some medication for the aching. I was now facing the sleeping Glenn, who was still out of ti thanks for my subtle movements.

His other arm was underneath his head, tucked under the pillow as I placed the arm he had over me back over my side, staring at him for a moment or two. He was so peaceful when he was asleep, his face smooth with no evidence of fear or nightmares going on in his brain. I moved my spare hand up to move some of his hair out of his eyes, seeing him stir slightly but remain asleep. I smiled from seeing him like this: Since he wasn't running around or trying to save my own life. This was the first time he was genuinely calm and relaxed in front of me. Those moments were rare for us, very rare.

Thinking back to my parents, I wondered if they would like think of him. My mother would love him in a heartbeat, since he himself is so kind and genuine. She would think of him as a perfect match for me. My father, being as strict as he is, would think that Glenn was not good enough for me. But of course no boy I would bring him was never good enough for him. But Glenn was strong, very strong, not to mention brave. I would think that right there would have my father approve of him. And my brothers? Boy, they would have a field day with him. I would get the teases, the lingering looks from them and me retaliating with them.

Just thinking about my family made me sad that they wouldn't be able to meet Glenn or talk to him. Would they? What if we stuck together with the rest of the group and we all met up with my family? That would make me beyond happy, and I felt warmth soar through me once more from the thought.

Glenn opened his eyes and I saw him look right at me. He was silent, though his brown eyes said everything to me. I saw him slowly smile from seeing me and I smiled back at him. His fingers drummed against my back as we faced each other, too wrapped up in each other to say one word for a minute or two. I loved the feeling of being in his arms on my bed, seeing him stare at me as if he saw something for the first time in years. His look was a look of admiration, a look of sheer happiness and a bit of joy.

"I don't wanna move from here." He said aloud in a whisper, his voice filling the quiet room.

"Me neither." I replied back to him having me laugh slightly, "I'm turning into a sap because of you."

"Don't blame me because you've forgotten how to have a heart." He said in a teasing tone, having me sneer at him playfully and seeing a smile in return from him. We fell back into silence against and I rested my head on his chest. Glenn wrapped both arms around me at that point, making me sigh aloud as I heard his steady heartbeat through his cotton shirt.

"I don't want to be dead weight." I said aloud to him, breaking the minute of silence we were having. It was a true thought, since I was one of the only girls to go out with the boys and fight off Walkers. But now that my ankle was busted for awhile, it was going to be killer for me to go back to work. I didn't want to be dead weight for the boys to try to handle.

"You won't be dead weight." He replied back to me, "Your ankle will heal before you know it and you'll be back on your feet."

"Until then?" I asked aloud, thinking that from when I was hurting to the point that I was going to be healed up, it would be forever. I was never one to sit still, let alone on a bed for a certain amount of time because of an injury.

"It would be better if you stayed here and out of trouble." Glenn said aloud, having me sigh in both defeat and annoyance.

"I'll go stir crazy." I reminded him.

"Better you be alive here and stir crazy, then out there risking your neck with a busted ankle." He said back in retaliation.

"I can still bike on a bustled ankle." I explained to him, "Trust me. I've broken bones before and still worked on the job. I can at least be some sort of bait for the Walkers when you guys go on your rounds."

"You think Rick will let you do that, let alone still fight off Walkers from that near death experience you just had." Glenn asked me and I looked up at him from my spot, "I know how you are, Katie. And I know I can't talk you out of something that is already in your head, not to mention take a weapon out of your hand. But we are look out for each other, including you." We were silent once more, I knew Glenn said his piece and I looked back up at the ceiling. I thought back to my parents once more and I smiled at the thought.

"I wish you would of met my parents." I replied aloud, feeling Glenn trace some of my hair with his fingers.

"Tell me about them." Glenn said to me in almost a demanding tone. I thought about it for a moment before going along with him. I grabbed one of his hands with mine, looking at our joined hands and smiling.

"My mother is very kind and loving." I started aloud, thinking of her in my head and how beautiful she is.

"Just like you." Glenn said aloud in a joking tone, having me smirk as he kissed my head.

"She knows how to keep my father grounded, sine he's so tough and stern. But you would like my father, he's a strong man and knows how to fight battles. Even though he was a Captain at Fort Benning, he was very much a father figure to me and loving." I explained to him, my father's face was now in my mind. He was a handsome guy, making me fully convinced that my mother only for his looks.

"Do you think they would like me?" Glenn asked me with curiosity in his tone of voice. I wrapped my arms around his middle and nodded my head, thinking of how sweet that they would meet him. I know deep inside of me that they would love him like he was their son, since he cared so much for me. It made me wonder, did he love me? I mean, really love me? Was what I was feeling for him real love? Neither one of us used the L word just yet with each other, maybe we weren't ready to vocalize it in front of the others. But then again, it was a scary step for someone to take.

"They would love you, Glenn." I said to him, hearing nothing else from him. We both we content with the conversation, and I was falling back asleep in his arms once more. One more restful night with Glenn, nothing else was sweeter.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Hey guys, I'm bringing more action to the story I promise. I just wanted to give more Glenn and Katie scenes together and I'll bring more Walker killing! Let me know how I am doing and if you have any ideas message me! thanks for reading!


	24. Now or Never

"We know the plan?" Rick asked all of us, the group of us in a circle facing him. There was no longer snow, since it was now becoming spring in the area. The warm clothes were gone, having us break out the flannel rolled up sleeved shirts, shorts and tank tops. I was glad some of my girls were still there for warm weather. I missed seeing the green trees around us, breathing in the flowers that were in bloom and the sun coming back out once more.

"We got it." Daryl replied aloud, reloading his arrow in his crossbow and hopping into the bed of the truck, Jacob right behind him and having me get on the bed of the truck last. Glenn was near the blue truck with T-Dog, Carol and Rick with Lori and Carl inside the blue truck. We all war going to go out and over to the next city to get more food and supplies. I placed my bike in the red truck, laying it on its side and standing up completely in the bed. Since it was a bigger run than before, we all decided to go together in a group and get the job done together. It's been about a week since my incident with the booby trap, and my ankle was about to be completely healed. I was still hobbling on it, making me stay in the bed of the truck the whole time and not move from my spot. Glenn was going to do the same from the other bed of the truck, much to our dismay of not being together physically during this run. But we were both good enough to be separate.

"Let's go. Remember, stay in formation and don't loose each other." Rick explained to us and we all loaded up in the car. Zelda was in the backseat of our truck, having me think that she was in fact a goo source since her nose would track food and Walkers near us. As we all got into the trucks that were side by side, Glenn looked over at me from the bed of the blue truck. Shotgun in hand and his long sleeved shirt with the sleeves rolled to his elbows, I smiled at him.

"Is it weird to think I find you attractive holding your shotgun like that?" I asked him in a coy tone, seeing him with his shotgun over his shoulder and still holding the handle. He smirked at me as he eyed me from my spot. I heard the engines roar to life.

"Not as attractive as you with yours." He said in a low tone, having me bit my lower lip and I leaned over to get closer to him. As soon as he was close enough, I grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him towards me, seeing him stubble bait since he was in the other truck. I kissed him square on the lips, hearing hi, groan against my lips as I held it there for a moment. It wasn't a typical gentle kiss we would have, nor was it passionate. But this kiss was fierce, showing me what kind of effect he was having on me. I pulled away, seeing him look at me with a dazed look in his eyes and I grinned widely at him.

"Don't leave me hanging." He said in almost a pleading tone as I pulled away from him some more, releasing his shirt from my hand and leaning back to my truck and holding the top.

"Good things come to those who wait." I replied back to him, winking at him and seeing him smirk back at me. I somehow liked playing these games with him, seeing how afar he would go before he would snap. BUt what was wrong with me doing that to him? Was it that I was falling hard for him? The more time I was with him, the more I wanted to be vocal about it with him and physical with him. But we still had one more hurdle to go over, saying that one word that would defy our relationship.

The trucks started rolling down the hill from the house and I saw us approach the gate, Daryl hopping out and unlocking it. Before we knew it we were on our way through our town into the next town over, feeling the cool air on our faces and seeing more colors in the trees and bushes. We were so used to seeing white and gray from the harsh winter, so color brought out some bright eyes within ourselves. I clutched onto the hood of the car as we drove faster down the road.

While we were riding along the road, I would remember times in the past when my father would take me into that same town we were about to go into, but he would take me for ice cream. The town had one of the best ice cream stores in the state, and when I would get high marks in school, or just because, my father would take me there with my brothers and we would making an outing out of it. It brought a smile to my face as I saw we were approaching the food store. The trucks slowed to a halt as I saw Rick, Zelda and Jacob get out of the red truck. As the others got out go the blue truck, those who were in the beds looked around and had their guns out and ready. I had my shotgun in both hands, aiming at anything that moved around us. The others went into the food store, having us hear them in the hollow store and the leaves in the trees moving around. It was very quiet in the area, having me worry that we were going to be bombarded by some people real quick. I looked around behind the food store, seeing that it lead into a alleyway between two buildings that looked like apartments. Everything looked abandoned, and I was gutting rather curious. Could there be people up there, hiding out like we are at my home? How is it that they could survive this long, since they do have a food store that he walking distance away from them? There were the two apartments, the alleyway in the middle of them and the food store in front of that one as well.

"You think anyone is up there?" I asked aloud, since Daryl was standing next to me. I pointed with my shotgun barrel to the apartments as he looked over at me.

"Doubt it, since most tend to leave and find a bigger place than there." Daryl replied aloud to me, having me look over at him, "Besides, even if they do survive this long in those apartments, then they are hardcore."

I was about to say something else when I heard a gunshot go off from the apartments. All four of us immediately ducked behind the roof of the track, away from sight and we all looked at each other. Who fired that shot? Someone was up there and they were going to either try and scare us or kill us. The sound echoed into the still air, having me shake form just hearing a single sound that was louder than out voices.

"What the hell was that?" I asked Daryl aloud as he looked through the glass of the truck towards the apartment. I heard the walkie talkie go off with Carol and Glenn as both Daryl and myself looked over at the other truck. Carol took out the talkie to her ear.

"What's going on out there?" I heard Rick in the talkie as Daryl kept looking through the glass at the apartment building.

"Someone's in the apartment trying to shoot at us. Rick, don't move from inside the food store." Carol explained to him as another shot was heard near the blue truck. Daryl looked over at Carol, seeing her shove the talkie down by her foot and Glenn covering his head in case glass flew by them. I took in a deep breath as I looked over the roof of the truck slightly to see which window it was coming from. There was nothing to go off from, since all of the windows were dark and not clearly visible for me to see him. He shot once more, having me fly back behind the roof of the car and try got think of a plan as to how to get this guy out of our way. It was only one shot at a time, meaning there was only one guy up there somewhere that was trying to get rid of us. I looked over at Glenn, seeing him look back at me to make sure I was okay.

"You guys alright?" he asked us aloud, having me take a sigh of relief and lean against the back of the truck.

"I'm okay, I'm okay." I replied back to him, seeing Daryl nod his head to show that he himself was okay.

"Jacob has an idea." Rick said aloud in the talkie, having us all lock eyes onto the talkie and Carol's hands. If he knew how to get that guy out of our hair, I was up for the challenge.

* * *

I waited behind the truck, my food on the pedal and my hands grasping the handlebars in a tight grip. My head was ducked low behind the bed of the truck out of sight as I waited for Daryl to tell me to go. He was aiming right at the windows again, but we were waiting for the one signal from Rick. Just waiting alone gave me a rush to the head and heart. Since I was never a patient person to begin with, this was torture. Being back on my bike made me feel like I was back in New York, waiting to deliver a package. I could feel the speed going through my body and into my legs and feet, waiting to be used. For last three seconds before I head the signal was all around too long for me to handle. Even though I had a busted ankle that was still wrapped up in gauze, I wasn't going to pass up a opportunity to help save the group.

I heard it: the gun shot. But this gunshot was no regular tone, it was a flair. Jacob found a flair gun in the store that still had one shot left in the barrel, figuring someone must of used it as a signal for help but no one came around to find them. He used it against the wall of the apartment to blind whomever was there while I would bike over the side door, go in with Rick behind me since he would come out of the store, and we both would try to find the guy trying to kill me. Sure, it seemed like guerrilla warfare, but we where trying to survive.

"Book it." Daryl hissed at me, I pushed my foot on the pedal and was off within seconds. I flew past the truck and over to the apartments, giving me about fifty feet to fly in two seconds. Thankfully I was fast enough for the challenge. I heard random gunfire from above, knowing the guy was trying to hit me. But Daryl was shooting back to protect me, along with Glenn as I saw Rick run out of the store and to the side door. I stopped the bike and threw it down, walking over to him and pulling the shotgun off from being strapped to me back. Rick had his revolver out, hand on the door and nodding at me to see if I was ready. Gun cocked and loaded, I nodded my head. He threw the door open, and we both ran in.

Now or never.


	25. Sweet Present

Rick and I ran down the hallway, Rick going in the front and I was taking up the rear. Looking in every hallway facing the direction of our trucks, I saw see that each room was isolated with no one inside. I thought at first we were on the wrong floor, but I saw Rick looking in front of us and I did as well, seeing a orange glow coming from one of the rooms at the end of the hallway. We both stopped for a second, realizing it was the same room that Daryl shot at and now it was literally on fire. We both bolted into a run, guns out and ready for anything or anyone coming out to greet us.

As soon as we turned a corner, I saw Rick ducking from something flying at him, having me go to the right side and coring my head. It was one gunshot and then I heard a struggle happening between two people. I looked up and saw Rick trying to wrestle a gun out of another person's hand. I ran over to help Rick, but I saw the gun almost aim towards me for one second, having me dive to the side and stay low as they continued struggle. I saw a perfect opportunity as Rick had the guy's back to me, having me throw up my shotgun bottom end and swiping it across his head, seeing the guy fall to the floor in a flash and release Rick. Out of his hand was a gun, falling to the floor. I could see he was still conscious so I kicked the gun away from him and aimed my shotgun at the man's head. Rick grabbed the back of his shirt and dragged him out of the apartment and into the hallway as we saw the smoke getting bigger around us. He slowly moved to be on his back, looking up at the both of us. Rick stood over him, having me stay right behind him and make sure he wasn't going to go anywhere near Rick. But as soon as I saw his face, all of his face, and I knew he was one of the goons that chased after me in the forest. I remember his face, seeing him smirk at me as I ran through the snow. A shiver went down my spine, making me try to take a deep breath as the man coughed and blinked a few times on the floor.

"Where is the rest of your group?" Rick asked him aloud, having me look up at him for a second from my spot behind the guy. Rick looked like he was about to take this guy's head off, having me a bit worried from my spot with him. But I waited, hoping to hear some sort of good answer that we needed. But the man merely smiled, his grin was showing that he was about to play a game with up.

"What makes you think I'll talk?" He asked, the accent his harbored that more than I can handle. But I shoved the barrel of the shotgun into his collarbone, hearing him cry out in pain as he looked up at me. I only gave him a cold stare, not wanting to show my weakness. I knew he recognized me, but he wasn't going to say a word.

"Answer me." Rick replied to him, kicking his foot to have him look back at Rick. I could hear the fire in the apartment, but we weren't going to move anytime soon.

"We have the whole place surrounded." He replied aloud to us, having me look out one of the apartment windows and seeing the store at the ground level and some Walkers in the distance coming over to us. I knew that this was going to be some kind of set up, that they wanted to trap us there in the area to be killed by Walkers. But how were we going to get out of this?

"And you just walked into our trap." he said in a sneer, looking up at me and I felt my breath falling away from me. I heard more gunshots coming through, seeing Rick go over to a open window and look out. I looked behind me for a moment and saw the smoke getting darker in the apartment.

"We need to leave now, Jacob and Daryl are going to bottleneck the Walkers into the Alleyway." Rick explained to me, having me nod my head and look down at the man one more time. Were we going to leave him there? But I knew I had a plan for him, since he was going to get a taste of his own medicine.

* * *

"You ready?" Rick said over the talkie as I tied the very end of the rope to both of the man's ankles, Rick pointing his gun at the man's head in case he was going to move. I tied his hands behind his back with some rope we had stored away in my backpack, thinking this was the best time for a little bit of revenge. I heard the truck honk and then the man sliding away from us towards the the window he was tied to. We ran after him to see him dangling above the Walkers that were coming his way. He was in the middle of the alleyway, high above the ground and struggling to get out. Next task was trying to figure out to get back to the trucks and get my bike away from the Walkers. It was parked near the door on the bottom floor, but we didn't block it off from the Walkers.

"I'm going to get my bike, find us a way out of here." I said to Rick, seeing him look out the other window that was showing the two trucks. He started talking on the radio as I went down the stairs in a fast pace. I saw my bike propped up against the door, but I could hear Walkers right on the other side of the door. I slowly walked down the stairs and reached out for my biker, grasping the handle bar that was closest to me. As soon as I grasped it, however, I heard the growling on the other side of the door and the door itself started to shake. I pulled the bike towards me, holding the middle body bar and hoisting the bike behind my back as I can run up the stairs. That motion alone made me think back of being a messenger, taking my bike up and down stairs to get to my old apartment.

"Let's go katie." Rick said aloud to me as I ran with the bike against my back towards him and a abandoned apartment. We ran inside and I slammed the door shut, seeing him throw open the window and look out. The red truck was bracing up to have the bed right underneath us, having a 10 foot fall from where we were and the bed. I threw down the bike first, hearing the clattering of the bike hitting the metal bed. I squinted, thinking I made too much noise and the Walkers would come running. But they were too occupied with something else, thank goodness. I jumped down first, landing in the bed of the truck in a huff and almost hitting my bike in the process. Rick jumped right after me, having me look forward and hear the trucks starting up once more. But I felt Rick tap my shoulder, having me look back at him as we pulled away. Rick pointed to the alleyway, having me see the man hanging over the Walkers and many pairs of hands reaching up to try and grab him. Something told me that I should feel bad for him, but then again he did the same for me. I myself had moral once, back when I was living a normal life. But this, this is a new life and a new set of morals.

Eye for an Eye.

* * *

"How many more do you think there are out there?" Daryl asked aloud to the group as we all sat in the living room that night. Since we came back I was thinking the same question, maybe there was only a handful of them. But what is there was an army of them, picking off groups one by one in order to conquer. There was more than Walkers to worry about in the world at that point, and we knew that.

"There had to be at least 5 more of those guys, but there might be more." T-Dog replied next to Rick, having me see that he was thinking reply about this.

"How are we going to deal with them?" Lori asked aloud in confusion. I looked over at Glenn who was sitting next to me, seeing him look just as serious and just as intimidated because of the situation.

"We'll deal with them like we did with that guy today. If they come after us, we'll fight right back at them." Rick explained to us, having me feel a eerie chill going down my back with how intense he was sounding, "If they threaten our safety, then we will retaliate."

"I like how that sounds." Daryl said in almost a smirk, having me think more about the situation.

"For now on, we go in threes and fours, pairs only if it is an emergency. No one goes on their own outside the property, and we'll keep an eye out everywhere outside the fences. As long as no one knows we are here, then we are safe." Rick explained to us in a stern tone, going back to his sherif mode. We all nodded our heads. knowing that he was thinking of the right move for the group. We all got up from our spots and I went up to my room to drop off my old jacket that I wore that day. Walking up the stairs I can hear the murmurs coming from the group. They were still talking about the goons that have been on our tail since the incident in the forest. It wasn't that I didn't want to talk about them, I have a lot to say about them since they almost permanently damaged by ankle and almost killed me in a run. I was just over everything that happened that day.

Walking into the bedroom I stripped off my jacket, seeing how dirty it got from the soot of the fire and the dirt smudged on it. I placed it gently on the back of the chair and sat down on one side of the bed facing the window. The sun was shining through the window, having me feel warmth on my face as I placed my hair in a messy bun. My eyes blinked a few times from the light in the room, not to mention I was getting rather tried from running around all day that day.

But I felt a pair of lips against my neck, giving me s significant chill down my spine and my hands resting on the top of the bed shaking slightly. I knew those lips, as morbid as it sounded. They belonged to the only person who would ever kiss me at the most unusual time: Glenn.

He placed his hands on my bare arms, feeling the heat of his palms against my skin as he pressed more kisses against my neck softly yet with a hint of demand. I stayed still, very still as I closed my eyes and had my senses take over. How did we event get on top of the bed without me feeling the bed move. Dan him for being so sly and fast. I could feel his body right behind mine, having me lean back to rest against his front and his hands on my arms tightened slightly. He was making it hard for me to concentrate and try to focus on what was going on in my brain. It was all turning to mush, Damn him for being to demanding.

"Someone is impatient." I murmured aloud, trying to keep my voice in a strong tone but it was hard since his kisses were no longer gentler but booming firmer against my cool skin. He stopped kissing me for one second, having me freeze in my spot completely when I felt his lips against my ear.

"It's not my fault you left me high and dry today after you kissed me." He replied in a husky whisper. I swallowed the gasp that was threatening to escape from my mouth. He was having a profound effect on my, something I never thought he would have. But who was I to judge, since at that moment I wanted nothing more than to jump his bones then and there.

"I told you good things will come to those who wait." I replied back in a counter attack. I pulled away from him slightly, turning around to face him and sit on top of the bed with him. I could see he had that look in his eye, the same look that made me want to kiss him senseless on the bed. I was pushing the envelope with him, but he could of stopped some time before. Instead he went along with it, seeing that he was into it like I was.

"Have I wanted long enough?" He asked me, his fingers dancing on the top of my skin of my forearms. Man, he was making me fall harder for him. I didn't think of anything else, anyone else, except him. I smirked at him, seeing him lean in to kiss his square on my mouth a deep kiss. That kiss alone was the answer he was looking for, having me give the control over to him. I was a goner, a complete goner as he ran his fingers through my hair and pulled me closer to him.

Sure we had to fight off both Walkers and goons now, but I forgot about them as Glenn helped me strip off my shirt and I took off his pants. It was a line we knew we were going to cross at one point in this relationship. Why not then? We both knew what was going to happen, and how it was going to effect both of us. I could think of the negative and the future, how one day we were going to have to go out separate ways. But just looking at Glenn hover above me as we kissed on my bed, feel his hands against my hot skin and hear him gasp as I kissed him back.

I thought of only the present. The sweet present.


	26. Time to Ride

The days in our area were getting warmer and warmer, flowers were coming out in my mother's garden and the trees were filled with green leave once more. I forgot how green my home is in the spring, since the last time I saw this much green in the hills and trees was when I was moving out at 18. It was a nice change from the fog and snow that we were suffering in for months. I loved going out onto the porch in the spring evenings and see more stars come out, along with the moon lighting the whole forest with a tint of blue.

It gave me a sense of peace.

It was going on month 5 since Rick and his group came to our house. We felt comfortable there, but then we knew that there was going to be a time when they needed to leave and go find another place to call home. To stay in one place for so long, that would be crazy in the head for someone to bear. But I prayed hat they would stay as long as they could. Would I go with them? Would Glenn want that? It was another challenge for me to take on as I would find myself going on hunting sessions with Rick and his son Carl in the forest.

I drew back on the arrow with the bow in my hand, aiming right at a doe that was alone near the creek. I was about 10 feet away hidden in the forest and behind some leaves in a bush. Being very still i tied not to breathe too loudly. Daryl taught me more on hunting, since Jacob was out on a run that day with T-Dog. Carl and Rick were on the other side of the hill trying to shoot at another game that went through the area. I could feel the sun beating down on my neck as I drew back bit more before breathing out. I released, seeing the arrow hit the doe and the doe in return falling to the floor. I grinned and stood up in my spot, the arrow holster on my back with my machete on my hip. Walking over to the doe, I moved my ever growing hair away from my eyes to examine where I hot the doe. Right on the neck, making it break and a instant kill. I squatted in front of the dead doe, seeing no more life in the doe's eyes. Pulling out the arrow in one clean go, I wiped the blood on my boot and placed the arrow back in the holster behind me. I stood up and pulled out my talkie that was in my back pocket, clicking on the side and hearing static.

"Glenn do you copy?" I asked aloud into the talkie. I heard nothing at first, having me examine the dow some more.

"Copy on Glenn, what's going on sweetheart?" Glenn said aloud to me on the talkie. I smiled, thinking of how adorable he is when he calls me sweetheart.

"I got another doe." I replied back to him on the talkie.

"Isn't that your third kill this week alone? Your mentor will be so proud." He said back to me in a joking tone, having me giggle in my spot.

"I bet he will, honey. Mind grabbing Daryl for me and coming over to help me drag this thing back?" I asked him aloud over the talkie. I looked behind me and through the trees I thought I saw a figure. I froze in my spot, my smile gone from my face as I saw the figure was very still, not moving at all. I moved away from the doe, my spare hand on my machete handle as I walked closer to the figure. Whoever, it was, his eyes were closed and his mouth was slacked.

"Yeah we'll be out there in a second" Glenn said aloud in the talkie as I got closer to the figure. But when I was close enough, what I saw in front of me shocked me. It was a dead man, not a Walker, but he was very much dead. He was hung by a noose that was wrapped around a branch that was pretty high on the tree. His body was tied to the same tree, making me see that this man was on of the goons that was after me. But he looked so young, about my age to be exact. I was frozen in my spot, thinking of who would do this to that man? The answer was clear in my brain, I knew who it was. However I still got the same chill down my spine as I brought the talkie to my lips.

"Glenn, contact Rick and get him over here. Daryl too." I explained to him in my serious tone.

"Why, what happened Katie?" He asked me with a hint of concern as I examined the body that was about 6 feet above me.

"We have a problem."

* * *

"Whoever did this, they want Walkers coming towards us." Rick explained aloud as I watched Daryl cut down the body, being perched up and over the branch that the noose was on. The body fell to the floor in a heap, having all of us stand back with bandanas over our mouths to hide the smell and not get sick. Daryl climbed down from the tree as Rick examined the body on the floor. I stood next to Glenn as we waited for more on his mind.

"He was one of the goons that chased me months before." I explained to him, "I know he was. So why was he the one on the noose?"

"Maybe he wanted to leave, or was going against them." Glenn suggested to me, having me shrug as Daryl landed on the floor.

"Either way, we need to get the body out of here before Walkers catch the scent and come out for food. We can burn it in the backyard near the shed so that Walkers won't come in." Daryl explained, having them all look over at me for approval. Rick was still trying to live with my approval when it came to stuff happening on my property. I nodded my head.

"Better do it now than at night when the fire will attract them and the rest of the goons." I explained to Rick, seeing him nod his head and Daryl grabbing the end of the rope.

"I'll start it." Daryl said to me, walking up the hill with the body dragging behind him. The rest of the group waited a few seconds before we followed, having Glenn and I be in the back of the group holding hands and walking through the green forest. It was a nice scenery change, no more snow but moist dirt and leaves to walk through.

"How long do you think it'll take for the goons to find us?" I asked Glenn aloud in a curious tone.

"Beats me, I think they're just going around in circles." Glenn replied aloud, "But if they come our way, we'll be ready for them."

"And what if we're not at the house when they come." Glenn stopped when I said that, looking over at me and pulling down the bandana from his face to show all of his face. He looked at me like I was saying something shocking. I looked back at him, pulling down my own bandana and squeezed his hand.

"What do you mean?" He asked me in a shocked tone.

"Come on honey, you know we can't stay in the house forever. I'm thinking that we start moving out." I explained to him, "Our food will run out soon and we won't have a choice. Besides, the longer we stay in the same area, the more dangerous it will be."

"But it's your home, Katie." Glenn replied back to me as we started walking slowly up the hill behind Rick, "You fought hard to get here and now you want to leave?"

"I want to find my parents, Glenn." I countered back at him, seeing him look at me as I looked forward, "I know they are out there. I might as well find them out while I'm still able to then wait the last minute or something to happen."

"Sweetheart, You never know if they are on their way here to find you though. Are you willing to take that risk?" Glenn asked me, having me look back at him as we reached the top of the hill. I knew the risk I was proposing, but I needed that risk in order to feel better about myself. This risk, the worst risk that I would ever have to take, is something I knew would change my life forever. But I knew that I needed that risk in order to have a better life.

"This whole life we're living in is in fact a risk, Glenn." I explained to him, seeing him try to read my mind and see that I was telling the truth. He then sighed and nodded his head, knowing that it was true. He knew we were all at risk going through the motion of the apocalypse. I knew the discussion was over, since we both started to walk down the hill towards the house once more. Glenn then looked over at me with a small smile on his face.

"So, did you take that doe all by yourself or did you have Rick shoot it for you?" Glenn asked in a coy tone, having me playfully shove him and hearing him chuckle. We were back to our normal selves and smiles were back on our faces. He laced his fingers with mine once more, kissing the back of my hand as we descended down the hill.

"Babe, You'll be the death of me." I said in a low tone, hearing him chuckle and smile at me his brilliant smile. The way his hair shined in the light of the sun made me see his eyes differently. Since we were in the winter, the brown in his eyes and hair was dark. But now, seeing them in the sun, they were brighter and warmer. Spring was a good look for him.

Very good.

* * *

I shoved the food into the duffel bag and zipped it up, placing my arms through the straps to have the duffel bag turn into a backpack. I stood up from the food aisle and looked out the front window. The wind was blowing throughout the area, giving a chill in the air as I saw Glenn at the front of the store. He was getting the medical supplies, Jacob being next to me as he filled the other bag. The rest of the group were all around the store, getting things in their own bags that they brought. Jacob and I brought our bikes and parked them inside the store, since we rode behind the truck tog et our exercise in for the day. Since my proposition of leaving my home five days prior, I was scared to bring it up to the group. They might of liked being at my home and not wanting to move. But then again, I wanted to tell them the dangers of staying in one place for far too long. Would they buy what I had to tell them, or would they think I was crazy? I was scared to say it, so I decided to wait until I knew it would be the perfect time.

Zelda came with us on this trip, staying near me and sniffing at the food that I was packing. But I saw her ears perking up as she heard something outside of the store. I saw her walk over to Glenn, looking out the store and then her ear pointing up straight. She caught something in her scent, having met follow her and see what she was picking up. But as I got closer, I saw a group of Walkers. About 30 of them.

Coming our way.

"Rick!" I yelled out loud, seeing Glenn look up from his spot and seeing them as well. His eyes went wide as Zelda started growling in her spot. I hushed her from barking, knowing that if she barked, the Walkers would come at full force. I backed away from the front store, hoping we weren't going to be seen.

"Heel." I said to Zelda under my breath, Zelda following me and Glenn grabbing my arm to me back with him. Rick walked over to the front with Glenn and I, his eyes were just as wide as mine and he was shocked at what was going on.

"How did they all stick together and find us?" He asked aloud as Daryl, Carol and Jacob joined us in the front of the store in the shadows.

"I don't know, it might be the goons at this point." Jacob relied back, "The car is behind those Walkers, how are we going to get them out?" I looked over at the bikes Jacob and I rode on and thought of a good idea.

"Ambush." I replied aloud, seeing Jacob look at me and then the bikes. I looked over at him, seeing the light go off in his head and smirk on his face appeared. I was glad Jacob and I knew each other for so long, since we both knew how to get out of a hair situation.

"Rick." Jacob said aloud to Rick, seeing him turn around to face the both of us.

"We have an idea."

* * *

"Wait until they are close enough." Rick explained to us as I mounted my bike, one foot on the pedal and the other on the floor. I got on my fingerless gloves and my backpack, the shotgun strapped to my back and my machete in the holster on my hip. Jacob has a baseball in one of his fingerless gloved hands and his other hand on the handlebar. We both were going to go out, full force, and wait for the time to kill them all. This kind of thing took me back to New York once more as we saw the Walkers come closer to the store. The rest of the group hid in the shadows, Glenn hiding Zelda with him and I gripped the handlebar, ready for the word.

I looked over at Glenn, seeing him nod at me and I knew he was okay with me doing this. We both were beyond the point of trust, since we did save each others lives and we did have sex. I was so gone with him, there was no turning back. I then looked over at Jacob, seeing him nod at me once.

"Now." Rick said aloud, Jacob and I pedaling out into the bright sunlight and towards the Walkers. We both were going sop fast, having me let go and ride with no handlebars, grabbing the machete from the holster and Jacob aiming his baseball.

Time to ride.


	27. Love Is A Battlefield

I took out one Walker in one throw, slicing through his neck and the Walker falling to the ground. Jacob next to me slammed his baseball bat into a Walker's head, the blood spurting out and the Walker. We went through the whole herd of Walkers, some of then trying to grab us as we passed. Jacob and I slid to a halt, braking with our feet and facing the Walkers that were now in front of us. They were facing us, away from the store and coming after us. I had my machete out and ready in my dominant hand and Jacob cracking his head once more as he got ready with his bat.

Rick, Glenn, Carol, Daryl and Lori all ran out towards the Walkers, guns firing at them and seeing him all fall one by one. Jacob and I sped towards them, killing more Walkers as we zigzagged through the mob of Walkers. When I went through, going back towards the store, I saw Carl standing at the entry with Zelda, shooting from his spot and Zelda barking next to him. I looked back to the mod, seeing a Walker coming towards me. I threw out my machete from my hand, seeing it land in his forehead. I then hopped off my bike, picked it up with my hands and whirled it in front of me, spiking a Walker to the side with the wheels. I placed the bike back down as I mounted it, rode over to the ellen Walker that had the machete in its head, and I picked up the bloody machete in hand.

"Keep them in this area!" Rick shouted to us as I swiped at another Walker, having a tilted hit to the side of his head and having me fall of my bike. I threw off the machete as he fell to the ground, seeing to my right and see Glenn with his shotgun, shooting at Walkers. I ran over to him ramming the Walker in the head with the back of his shotgun. Another Walker was coming up behind him, having me look and whirl my machete in hand.

"Glenn!" I yelled, seeing him look at me and then at the Walker. He ducked right in time for me to launch the machete right in the middle of his head. The Walker staggered and fell to the floor as Glenn got up slowly, looking at the no still Walker on the floor with my machete still in its head. He then looked over at me, with me having a huge grin on my face.

"Did you see that?!" I asked in a big grin, as if I earned a gold star in school. I thought he was going to look at me like I was a crazy person, but a wide grin was on his face. He was glad for me too, though I saw something click in his head behind his eyes. Even though there was chaos around us, I heard him say three words to me that would throw me off completely.

"I love you." He said, his voice sounded like he was high in drugs, but I heard him none the less. I was frozen in my spot for a second. He told me the three words that I never thought would come out of his mouth tho soon. But he did, and it sounded like the best thing that I have ever heard in my life. I felt everything in my chest and stomach going warm, my fingers twitching with either joy or excitement. I smiled, though we were in the middle of a chaos infested war with Walkers. I couldn't help but smiled about the fact that he told me that he loved me. He shot up his shotgun, aimed past me and shot a Walker that was right behind me. As the Walker fell, I saw him lower the gun and stare at me with seriousness in his eyes. I knew he was telling the truth when he told me those words, and I wanted to tell it to him right back.

"I love you too." I said to him, over the groans of the Walkers around us and the guns going off to stop them from killing us. Just like how my face lit up from those words he told me, Glenn's face lit up as well and I saw him walk over to me, having me see the last bits of Walkers go down to the floor after the massacre. Glenn threw down his shotgun, wrapped his arms around me and kissed me square on the mouth. We were kissing in the middle of demolished Walkers, none of them made it through our plan. But I was far too occupied with the fact that Glenn and I confessed our love for one another. The fact that I was framing his face with my hands, his hands on my hips and our kissing bringing a awkward silence to the group was nothing: we were in love.

Glenn pulled away, having me look at him at first then at the group next to us. THey were all staring at us, having me place my hands down from his dance and cover my mouth with one hand and the other resting on his shoulder. He still held onto me as we looked with embarrassment. Rick looked a but uncomfortable, as to how he was going to react to this. Carol, on the other hand, was giggling next to Daryl, who shook his head with a smirk and T-Dog looked in a opposite direction. Jacob grinned at us, Lori smiled and placed her hands on her tips and Carl looked utterly confused.

"Ummm." Glenn said aloud to the group, obviously going red from the embarrassment. I smiled nervously as I heard Carol giggle from her spot.

"Nothing says romance like slaughtering Walkers." Daryl muttered aloud, having me hear Lori snort under her breath and T-Dog chuckle in his spot. Rick even smiled, having me hide my alighted by hiding my face in Glenn's shoulder.

"To each their own Daryl." Carol reminded him in a light tone as Glenn rubbed my back. I was glad they they all were a bit happy, not completely awkward about it all. But I found it funny, how at the end of the world I found happiness and love, pure love, from someone whom I never expected to come into my life.

* * *

That night, since it was a warm night, I decided to go sit out on the front porch with Zelda and look out into the forest. It was getting lighter out at night since the moon was getting fuller, having me see the tint of blue over the trees and sky. I loved seeing more stars come out, not like in New York were the lights and buildings hid the stars away from the world. But the sight I saw that night, it was a beautiful sight.

My mind was way too occupied with the fact that Glenn told me that he loved me. He said it to me, in the middle of a chaotic situation. But the fact that he told me then, not waiting until we were safe, that made the whole concept more of a surprise and twist of fate. It made me think, when did I realize that I loved him? Was it when we first kissed after I ran away from the goons? Or was it before, when he hugged me in the forest after Daryl saved me? Even before that? When I first saw him? I knew he was different when I saw him for the first time, he didn't have the same fear and tough skin as Rick and Daryl did. No, he was a human being underneath it all, he was soft and he was genuine.

The wind in the trees soothed my skin and hair as I looked out into the tinted sky, hearing the front door opening and closing behind me. I looked over my shoulder, seeing that it was Glenn. Just seeing him now made me smile even wider than I ever did before, seeing him wearing his blue skinny jeans and a gray v neck shirt with no shoes. He smiled at me, tilting his head to the side as I let my red hair blowing in the slight wind.

"Hey." He said in a soft tone, walking over to me.

"Hey." I replied back to him, seeing his smile never leaving his face as he wrapped his arms around me from behind. He kissed the side of my head, having me hum in response as we stood in silence. I felt content in his embrace, very safe and very secure in myself. His hands rested on my stomach, having me reach back to clutch his shoulder and my other hand resting on his hands. We were both to con ten in each other's arms, it was second nature at this point. I looked up at the sky once more, seeing more stars popping out into the sky.

"What are you doing out here by yourself?" Glenn asked me aloud, having me smile from my spot as he rested his forehead against my head.

"I was out here thinking." I replied back to him in a soft tone, since we were so close to each other then.

"What were you thinking about?" Glenn asked me aloud, having me look back at him and watch his face was that facing me. I saw his eyes, how warm they were even at night. His small smile on his face that I grew to love and adore. I shifted my body around to face him, placing a hand on his cheek and feeling how warm he was.

"How much I love you." I said to him in almost a breathy tone. He searched my eyes for a moment, and then moved his hand up to move my red hair away from my face. As his fingers danced across my skin to my ear, I felt like I was loosing my sense of self just staring at his eyes and feeling his touch against my skin. He was booming such a part of my life, he made me a better person. And I did love him, beyond a shadow of a doubt I loved him. I wish I knew a better word to use to express how much I cared for him, but there was no luck in my end.

"Even though I said it at probably what would be the worst time." Glenn started, having me laugh at my spot in his arms and seeing his smile from my reaction, "I'm glad I said it. Because I've been wanting to say it to you for awhile now." I placed the hand was on his cheek on his shoulder as he placed his hand on my neck, his thumb rubbing against my skin and making me sigh from my spot. I knew he loved me, as narcissistic as that sounded. But I knew from his gazes at me from across the room, how he kissed me when we had sex, or when he would just talk to me on a regular day. I knew it, but I was so blind until that point out there in the field.

"I love you Katie." He said it again, just as thrilling at the first. I smiled widely at him, kissing him deeply on the porch and feeling him kissing me back. I was in a whole new world with Glenn, just because of one word and one concept that took us over. When he pulled away, I rested his forehead against mine and closed my eyes.

"I love you Glenn."


	28. Eye For An Eye

I woke up to the sound of a light spring rain against the window of my bedroom. I blinked a few times, feeling the blanket over my body and the warmth underneath the covers. I saw the rain lightly patter against the glass as I turned around in the bed, seeing a sleeping Glenn on the other side of the bed. He was so peacefully in his sleep, a small smile on his lips as layer still in the bed we stared. Since he was wearing his boxers and I was only in my bra and boxers, it was safe to say that our body heat was making it so hard to leave the bed. But I was too hungry not to stay there in bed with him. Sneaking in a kiss against his lips, he didn't moved but kept breathing in and out, still asleep. I snuck out of bed and threw on a old shirt from my dresser. Walking across the bedroom floor I saw Carl outside in the yard, playing with Zelda. Zelda was wagging her tail and Carl was laughing as Zelda chased him because Carl had the ball. I smiled from my spot, walking over to the door and placing my hand on the door knob.

I looked out into the hallway and the stairs going down to the first floor, it was still dark in the house because of the weather. I heard nothing else in the house, making me think it was still early in the morning. But I then had a thought, back when I found the DVD that my mother made for me. I remember her saying something about money in a safe, and it was somewhere in the house. With that in mind, I tried to remember in my head where my father would keep a safe or any kind. How would I know where the safe would be? My father was a bit secretive when it comes to his safe. I walked down the hallway, having this thought in my head when it went off: I know where it is.

Immediately I broke into a run towards my parent's room, opening the door and seeing the large room once more. I scanned the room and than ran over to the closet, my father's own closet. Before I opened it, I head my older brother's voice in my head. "_Don't go in there Katie. That's dad's closet, and he gave me a earful for even going near it. I don't know why, but he doesn't like anyone going in there, not even mom." _I never thought of going through his closet when Jacob and I came to the house for the first time 6 months ago. I threw open the closet door, seeing a lot of my father's old clothes and uniforms. It smelled like him, the faint smell of Old Spice and cologne. I turned on the light and rummaged through the clothes, seeing my father in my head in theses clothes. Just that lone made me miss him even more. But I was on a mission, getting to the safe. I reached my hand out through the closet and felt something hard at the other end of the closet, hard and metal. Digging through with my hands, I pushed the old shoe boxes aside and saw a rather large safe. It was bigger than I thought it was going to be. But what was confusing and yet amazing, I saw a yellow Post It on the front of the safe, in my father's handwriting.

"_26-13-78_

_I knew you could find it Sweetheart"_

I didn't know whether to sigh in relief or in joy, but I could feel tear coming to my face as I started to unlock the safe by the numbers. For some reason I knew that they planned this out since the outbreak of the Walkers. They had a master plan, and this was only for me. Imagine their plan for y brothers as well, how different or similar it might of been. As I placed the last number in the safe, I heard the safe unlock with a 'click'. This was it, whatever was behind this small door was going to either help me survive or kill me off in the end. Taking a deep breath, I opened the door slowly and looked inside.

The first thing I saw was a stack of files and papers, having me think those were the trusts and investment that my father had since I was born. I then saw a money bag, tucked away in the corner and pulled that out. Placing it by my foot, i kept digging through the safe. There was a written letter in my mother's writing at the very bottom of that safe as I pulled it out and placed all of the piles of papers on the floor next to my feet. Slowly I closed the door of the safe and shuffled out of the closet, pulling the paper pile with me as I went. Slowly I got up from the floor and had the pile of papers in my hand, turning around to see Glenn stand in the hallway. He was only in his boxers, his hair a bit messy as he looked at the papers in my hand.

"I found the safe." I replied back to him, seeing him walk over to me and take the papers from my hands, holding them close to his chest.

"What do you think its in here?" Glenn asked me aloud as I joined him, looking down at the papers in his hands.

"I don't know, but hopefully something that my mother told me in the DVD." I explained to him, the both of us starting to walk away from the master bedroom.

"Was this all that was inside?" Glenn asked me as we both walked back to my room and placed the papers on my desk. I sat in the chair, Glenn standing behind me and placing his hands on my shoulders as I shuffled the papers around.

"This and a couple of other things, but this looks more important." I explained to him, seeing some of the paperwork in front of me and moving some to one side of the desk. Most of it looked like trust funds, investments and deeds to the house. I saw my name in several of them, having me go into the assumption that they left the house in my name. They were doing this in case I did survive and they didn't, a safety net for me and my future. Bless them for doing such a gift, but why me and not my brothers?

"This doesn't make sense, why not my brothers?" I asked aloud as I scanned the papers some more. I was still confused when I saw the handwritten letter that was in the bottom of the stack, I pulled it to the top of the stack, starting to read the letter.

_Katie,_

_Thank goodness you found the safe when you could. I was more afraid that you wouldn't be able to find it. Since you saw the DVD you know we are heading west, and trying to get in contact with your brothers. You know David and Ryan are in D.C., and once we grab them we'll try and get to Harry. I don't want you to worry about us, we can handle this together. All your father and I want is for you to worry about your own life and to stay alive._

_We left the house in your name in case you were able to survive this whole ordeal. We trust that you will take care of the home when we are not there, and your brothers do understand this. Also, all of our money is left with you as well, cash and accounted for. I do trust you in using this money wisely and protect it for your future._

_If we ever get to a phone or landline, we will try to contact you as soon as we can. As soon as we can get to the west coast, we are going to try and get back to you. We want you to leave the house if you are in fact danger, your life is more important that the house. Make the right choice, and wait for us to contact you._

I looked up from the letter, a bit more confused since they were going to try and contact me in the near future. How are they going to contact me? And where are they now? Glenn took the letter from me to read and I kept thinking about what they would be doing at this moment in time. They left me with so much as if they wouldn't make it, but I knew for a fact that they would. They have to. I needed to see them again, I had to know that they made it this far in this terrible world and they never got hurt or killed.

"She'll contact you?" Glenn said aloud in a confusing tone, having me look up at him and see him look back at me with a confusing tone. I shook my head at the thought.

"I have no idea what she means by that. She might have a phone on her, or even my dad." I suggested aloud, then thinking that the phones in the house might still be working. Before I could say another word to Glenn, the lights went off in the entire house. It all went dark within seconds as I shot up from the chair. I heard Lori downstairs yelling out to Carl to get into the house and Daryl hollering out to someone to answer his question as to what was going on. I looked over at Glenn and saw him look from me to outside the house. I did the same, seeing through the trees someone running towards the backyard. I saw, from a glance, that it was a goon.

Oh no.

"Rick!" I screamed running out of the room and down the stairs. Rick was with Carol and Daryl in the front room and T-Dog with Lori and Carl in the kitchen. I ran to the front door and locked it.

"Katie what's going on? What happened to the lights?" Daryl asked aloud as I walked over to the kitchen.

"Lock the backdoor and the side door, close the windows and lock them." I said aloud to the group as I heard Zelda barking at the backdoor.

"What do you mean?" Rick asked in almost a confusing tone. I whirled around to face him and the rest of the group.

"They are here at our house." I said to him, seeing the light go off in his head as Carol rushed to the kitchen windows. Lori went to the other windows on the first floor as T-Dog went up the stairs. I looked at the group, noticing someone was missing. I felt my breath leave me as I realized…

Jacob.

"Where's Jacob?" I said aloud in a scared tone, then hearing a gunshot from outside near the right side of the house. I looked out through the window of the kitchen, seeing one goon grab Jacob's shirt and drag him away from the yard. My heart was at the bottom of my stomach and my worst fear came through. I immediately ran toward the window, thinking that I would reach him as I screamed, "JACOB!" at the top of my lungs. Glenn grabbed me around my waste, pulling me back.

"Don't Katie!" He said to me as I tried to get out of his grasp and over to jacob outside the house. They shot him, my good friend and I prayed that they would die then and there. I didn't want to leave him in the hands of those goons. I hated the thought that his life was in their hands. I wanted to protect him from anyone who would dare to kill him. I was still struggling against Glenn as he tried to calm me down. But I was seeing red, finally stopping the struggle in his arms and breathing in and out in a fast pace. I saw Thomas, the one goon that I hated most of all, walking out to stand next to Jacob, who was bleeding from his arm and looked like he was given a good beat down from the rest of the goon posy.

"Bring your pretty out tomorrow morning at dawn in the street here, or your friend dies with us." Thomas said aloud to me in a sneer. He then walked away, pulling Jacob with him as I felt the tears in my eyes and my hope of the future slipping. I knew what he wanted, he wanted a fair trade since I did him wrong some time ago in the past.

Jacob for me. A eye for an eye.


	29. Promise Me

"We are not letting you go out there by yourself." Rick said to me as we sat together in the kitchen that very gift before I go out to meet the goons in exchange for Jacob. I was willing to go out there and get Jacob back, though I knew it would mean that I would have to get hurt in the process. But I hated the thought that Jacob was being held hostage with those guys.

"You have any brighter ideas?" I asked him aloud, seeing him getting more frustrated with me.

"Anything other than you going out there alone." Glenn explained next to me, having me clutch his hand in mine and look at him briefly. He did not like this idea, not one bit. He would rather me stay in complete safety then go out and risk my neck. And I would rater do the same, if it wasn't for Jacob.

"We need some kind of plan to make sure you and Jacob are safe." Lori said aloud next to Carl, who was petting a sleeping Zelda by my foot.

"Maybe we can flank them." T-Dog suggested aloud to the group.

"Hide out until we can go and get Jacob out of there?" Daryl added onto the conversation.

"If we do that then we'll have to be sneaky about it, we can't afford them to find out what we are doing and hurting both Katie and Jacob in the process." Rick said aloud as he walked back and forth in front of the living room and the rest of the group. It sounded like a reasonable to me, since me facing how ever many of goons that are left sounded like a suicide mission.

"But we don't know how many of those guys there are." Carol countered back, "They might have more than we can handle."

"Still, I think we should flank them and catch them off guard." T-Dog explained to the group, "This can have us both watch Katie and make sure none of those guys aren't going to do anything out of the blue."

"I like that idea." Daryl added in with the conversation.

"But these guys aren't dumb, they'll know something's up." I butted in, "If they get any idea of what we are going to do, then we are screwed."

"Then we'll have to be very sneaky about it, better to go in with this risk then have you go out alone." Rick explained to me, having me nod my head in a agreement. I looked over to Daryl, seeing him smile at me. I knew that the wheels in his head were turning, and he was thinking of a big plan.

"I know how we can do that." Daryl said aloud, having the whole group look over at him.

"I know how to hide in the woods, so does Red over here," Daryl explained, pointing to me, "If we can find good places in the woods that even those punks won't be looking for, then we can get a leg up and take them by surprise. Best way to do it, attack from above."

"Like what, climbing a tree?" Carl asked aloud in curiosity.

"Exactly that." I replied aloud, seeing the the group was a bit confused, "Think about it, they won't be looking above them when tomorrow comes around, they'll be looking on the ground. If we take them out from the sky, then we can win."

"I like the sound of that plan." T-Dog said aloud and I knew the plan was already set in motion. The plan sounded wonderful in my opinion, now it was only the matter of getting out alive and getting Jacob back in one piece. Since I knew that they would want to make a trade and have me go with them.

* * *

I walked over to the living room window, seeing Glenn standing there alone with his arms crossed in front of him and looking out into the darkness of the night. The rest of the group, talking in the kitchen, was getting the plan in order for the 50th time since it was life or death. I knew my part in the whole ordeal, but I wanted to talk to Glenn about what was going to happen.

He hated this, and I wouldn't blame him for it. I was about to walk to what would either be the biggest fight of my life, or my death bed. Either way, Glenn was not a happy camper. He would rather go in my stead, have me safe and away from danger, and have me not complain about it. I loved him too much to let him go to what I needed to do for not only Jacob, but for myself. I knew the goons ultimately wanted my house, to do whatever they wanted to it. I was not going to let my house be in the hands of a couple of rednecks who were going to burn it to the ground for kicks. I knew that, and Glenn knew it too.

"I don't like this plan." Glenn said in a serious tone of voice, still looking out the window and I stood next to him. I could tell he was hating this more than ever, making me wonder how I was going to talk to him about this.

"I know you don't." I said in the softness of our atmosphere. He shook his head slowly, his eyes still filled with seriousness in his eyes and also pain, knowing that this was out of his control. I sighed, running my fingers through my semi curly hair and kept my eyes on him.

"Look, I know you don't want me to go out there." I started, hearing him scoff as I continued, "But Jacob's life is far more important right now.

"Don't start." Glenn said in a cold tone, finally looking at me for the first time since our conversation, "Please Katie, don't start on the whole 'his life over mine' bullshit. You know that I don't play by those rules."

"You hate that rule." I countered back, seeing him rub his eyes in frustration, "But it's my rule. I am not going to let Jacob, whom I would consider as one of my brothers mind you, be killed by those guys."

"But why you?" Glenn asked me aloud, his voice sounding more like he was in pain than angry, "Why do they want you? Why not Rick, or Daryl, or even me? You know one of us would go out instead of you, in a heartbeat."

"That's why right there, Glenn." I said back to him, "Those guys know that you and the rest of the group would go out for me. So they want me and me alone, to show that you guys guys can't do a single thing about it." Glenn fell silent then, looking down at his feet and I knew this was killing in from the inside out.

"Glenn." I said to him trying to get him look back up at me. But he was still looking down at the floor, having me place my hands on his upper arms and seeing him finally look up at me with his eyes that were filled with pain. I hated seeing him in pain, and I knew that this was going to be a day of hell for him. But I knew what I had to do in order to save not only Jacob, but the whole group as well.

"You know that I won't go out there without putting up a fight." I said to him, seeing that he knew that it was true, "And I won't stop fighting until I get to come back to the group and to you. I need you to trust me."

"That's not the problem Katie." Glenn said in a softer, more broken tone as we looked at each other in silence in the living room. "The problem is that I won't be there with you in case anything were to happen."

"You will be there, hiding out and watching out for me." I explained to him, but he shook his head.

"You don't get it, I want to be right next to you so I know that nothing or no one is going to try and hurt you. I hate knowing that you are going to go out there with guns pointed at you." Glenn said to me in his serious tone of voice. I was silent knowing, thinking of how and this was affecting him more than me. He had always placed my safety first, which is what I loved about him and his selflessness towards me. We both were selfless, it was in our nature. And since we were clashing on who can protect who, I knew that we needed to protect ourselves before we could protect each other.

"We both need to protect ourselves before we could protect each other Glenn." I explained to him, seeing him take his hand in mine and squeezing it tightly, "We're both too selfless for our own good."

"I hate that about myself." Glenn muttered to himself.

"Why?" I asked him, seeing him look up at me, "It's one of the things about you that made me fall for you." He smiled slightly and I smiled back at him as he placed a fly away piece of my hair behind my ear.

"Same here." he said in a more gentle tone of voice. I kept my smile on him as he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close to him. I breathed him in, smelling the scent of smoke, the old spice he would wear and the sweet smell of the trees that rubbed off on him for the past months.

"Glenn, I love you." I said to him in a serious tone, seeing him look at me directly in the eyes, "And I will do whatever it takes to come back to you. I don't want you to doubt that I won't fight with all of my strength in order to get back to you."

"I know you will." He said aloud to me, his voice was getting softer since we were getting closer together. I place my arm across his shoulder and the other rubbing his upper arm, though I was still in his arms and he was holding me in a protective manner, "Just promise me one thing."

I ran my fingers through his hair as he waited to tell me his promise that he wanted me to keep. Just looking into his eyes was like seeing him for the first time all over again in front of the gates to my home, in the pouring rain. I knew he was safe, I knew he was brave, and I knew he was comfort.

"Promise me, than you'll come back to me." He asked me, having me stare at him with a tilt of my head. He needed the reassurance that I was indeed going to come back to him, and I could tell that he needed that. I pulled him into a hug, feeling him wrap me in his arms tighter than before and I held him close. What I was about to do was beyond crazy, but I knew that this was going to be okay. I kissed the side of Glenn's head, holding him close and whispering in his ear.

"I promise."


	30. Showdown

That morning was foggy throughout the street. The sun was hiding, making the scenery even more eery as I walked out into the middle of the deserted street. The only sound I could hear was the ding going through the trees that was giving a haunting melody, not to mention my feet over the crackled leaves on the street. I was walking alone, no machete and no shotgun. It was as if I was going to my deathbed.

Was I?

I looked up to my left slightly, up high and seeing someone in the trees watching me. Though it was through the thick fog and weary coldness of the morning, I knew that person was Carol. I showed the group how to get in and out of trees without making a sound, since we practiced the night before in order to get it right. Carol and Glenn were on my right, Daryl and Rick on the left. T-Dog, Lori and Carl were going to stay far behind near the house in case they came back for the house, Zelda was with them as well.

Rubbing my hands on my flannel shirt as my hair flew in the wind, I walked to the middle intersection of the street, standing still and waiting for something to happen. My heart was coming out of my chest, my breath was getting shallow and my hands were going cold. This was a make or break, and Jacob was involved so it was worse. Much Worse. I wished that he was still alive and nothing really happened to him. But what I was doing was making myself vulnerable to save him. Glenn called me selfless, and he was right.

I was so damn selfless.

I saw four figures coming out from the fog towards me, and my stance changed from relaxed to tense. I knew it was them, since they didn't walk like Walkers nor did they seem like they were in the rush. I breathed in and out nice and slowly. The hairs on my arms were starting to stand up at a fast rate as I saw the from of them face to face.

Thomas was the first, with two of his henchman rednecks behind him with guns out and ready. But the one that I saw that made my heart drop was Jacob. He was bruising all over his face, his hands tied behind his back as Thomas had a gun to his back. I saw blood in Jacob's hair and on his lower lip, making me hate Thomas and his men more. They stopped walking and they were about fifty feet away from me.

Showdown.

"Where are your friends?" Thomas asked me aloud, his accent was sinking under my skin as I stayed strong in front of him.

"You told me to come along, so here I am." I replied aloud to him, my voice booming over the soundless forest. Thomas smiled, having me think that he was falling for our trap more and more. Things were still then, no one moved and no one said a word for a moment or two. AS this was happening, I was looking at Jacob and seeing him lock eyes on me. I knew that he was mentally yelling at me for going through with this, since he would rather have me safe then go out on a limb there. He looked so broken, so damaged, it made me want to fix it even more.

"So, what do you want?" I asked Thomas aloud, seeing him eye me like I was prey and he was about to devour me. I had to stay calm and collective in front of this group of goons, and know that the plan was still going on.

"It's real simple darlin'." Thomas said to me in his sinister tone, having me wait for what he was about to say next, "You."

I knew this was true, since he was going to exchange the safety of Jacob for me. He wanted my blood, since not only did I head-butt him months before but also having some of his friends that he made killed in order to do his dirty work. I was going to be the best vengeance. I didn't even want to know what he was going to do to me when I would give myself over to him, but at that point that was the least of my worries.

"Katie, don't do it!" Jacob said aloud to me across the way, his voice was broken and sounded so weak. But Thomas jabbed the gun harder into his back and Jacob was immediately silent. I hated seeing Jacob like this, but I had to do this in order to make sure that he was going to be okay. HIs life for mine, what a twisted situation this was.

I started to walk towards the group of men, slowly and surely as I tried to recap what the plan was in my head. But as I got closer and closer to the group, the more fearful I was becoming since something could go wrong in the plan. I thought of the group, how they were watching from within the trees and how much I appreciated meeting them in the rain months beforehand. But the one person I thought of the most: Glenn.

Glenn was watching, I knew he was. He was watching my every move and seeing what could go wrong. I knew he wanted to protect me, but I needed to make sure I can handle this alone. I wanted to tell me, so many times as I walked towards what could be my death bed, that I loved him. I would want to marry him, have a family with him, and live our lives together. Apocalypse or not, I wanted to be with Glenn.

As I got closer I could hear things going on through the forest, rustling around. I stayed facing the group, but inside I knew it was the other goons walking around and my group stopping them before they could do anything.

I was about five feet away, my hands at my sides and my eyes straight at Thomas. He smirked at me, a sinister smirk that made me cringe as he made Jacob stand up. Jacob stood still for a moment, before moving forward and towards me. I watched him with my eyes as he approached me.

"Katie, please don't do this. I don't want you to do this." He pleaded with me, his voice was completely broken at this point. I stared at him intensely, seeing that he was trying to get me to back down from the deal.

"Go into the trees and stay there." I said in a low tone, low enough so that Thomas couldn't hear me at all. Jacob eyed me as first, but I could tell he knew that something was going to happen and he caught my drift. I didn't say a single work after, seeing him walk past me as I went back to looking at Thomas with cold eyes. Thomas, though he was now by himself, was smiling so widely that I thought I could count every discolored tooth in his mouth.

"Fair is fair." I replied to him aloud, hearing Jacob still walking away behind me. I then heard a grin behind Thomas, then another grunt after. Thomas looked behind him, seeing that his two men were dead with arrows sticking out of their head. While he was turned, I ran over to him and kicked him in the back, seeing him fall to the floor. Jacob ran over to me as I picked up one of the guns that fell from the goons hands. Cocking it, I aimed at Thomas's head, seeing him freeze on the floor.

"You lied." He said in a cold tone, having me almost dig the gun into his neck at this point.

"I had insurance." I replied to him, seeing him place his hands on his side, showing that he wasn't going to move from his spot. With my spare hand I took out a pocket knife Daryl gave me and Jacob walked over to me, his back to me so I could untie him with the knife.

"You had me fooled." Thomas said in a grunt as I got Jacob completely free at this point. He grabbed the other gun from the other dead goon, walking over to stand on the other side of Thomas and aim at his head, "But you won't get out of this wood alive with my men surrounded."

"What men?" I heard behind me, having Thomas move his head and see Daryl walk over to us. Rick, Carol and Glenn were behind him, all with guns in hand and Thomas's eyes going big in horror. I knew he knew that his game was up, and he wasn't going to be going anywhere at this time. The 6 of us stood in front of Thomas, guns drawn at him and giving him the stare of death.

"Your 10 men in the woods?" Daryl asked in a coy tone, having me smile at Thomas.

"I can get more people to come after you." Thomas said in what could of been a threatening tone.

"I doubt that." Carol said aloud in her soft tone, though I knew it sounded demanding and terrifying in the end.

"I say we treat you the same way you treated Jacob: A punching bag." Rick said aloud to Thomas, his voice was almost a sneer. I looked behind me at Glenn, seeing him look at Thomas with hateful eyes and then over to me with almost softer eyes. I knew he was glad that I made it out alive, but then again we weren't out of the wood just yet. I looked back at Thomas, seeing him stare right back at me.

"I know what we can do with you. We can do the same thing we did to your friend at the super market." I replied to him, seeing him search my eyes for what I was really trying to say.

"Walker Bait."


	31. Way To Be Forward

I walked back into the hallway of the house, seeing it lit up thanks to Lori and Carl as we got back from the incident in the woods. I was glad that the whole incident with the goons was over completely, having me have more sleep at night and less worries. I was glad I had the whole group with me to get not only Jacob back, but to put those people in their place. Rick, Daryl, and the rest of the Atlanta group were officially part of my family and world, since they were going to put their own necks on the line for Jacob and I. And to think, we only met several months ago. Look how far we've come. Mostly, look at how far Glenn and I came.

On the way back from the woods, Glenn held my hand the whole time, and never released it. Though it was gentle squeeze of the hand, I knew he was so glad I got out in once piece. Throughout the whole ordeal, we never hugged, nor did we kiss. But we knew that we didn't need to do any of that, not in that moment when we almost got hurt. We could save that for later, away from the others.

Daryl and Carol were helping Jacob into one of the rooms he was staying in, after I heard constant reassurance from him that he was okay. I was still scared for him though, since he was with those guys for over night. He looked so out of place and so beat up, I thought just hugging him would snap him in two. So Carol immediately placed him to bed, Lori making him food and then going off on her own time with Rick. There was peace again in the house, which is something that I was grateful for.

I walked into Jacob's room, which was Sam's room. He was already in the bed, his face was looking a bit better since Carol was tending to him. But his arm was wrapped in gauze and above the covers and his lip was still big from bleeding earlier. He was very still in the bed as I walked over to stand next to him, grasping his spare hand and feel him squeeze it. I could see his bright eyes in the darkness, and even through the damage on his face.

"Carol told me to rest for three days, I doubt that'll happen." Jacob said to me in a hoarse tone. I grinned at him, seeing him smile at me.

"With you? I give it two days before you break out of bed." I said to him in a light tone. He laughed, making my smile go bigger as we looked at each other. I then felt guilt come over me, knowing that he was in pain because those goons wanted to get to me.

"If I knew what they wanted to do-" I started, knowing that I wanted tog et this off my chest.

"Don't." Jacob said to me in a stern tone, having me look at him with a confused look. He sounded angry with me, which was something I never saw coming.

"Don't you dare say this was your fault, Katie. This was not your fault." he said to me in a slow but stern tone, holding his glare at me. I knew he was trying to get my mind off of it, but it was not working.

"They were trying to get to me, Jacob. And you got in the way. I never wanted that for you." I explained to him, seeing him squeeze my hand in his.

"Yeah, and did you think any of us wanted to see you be placed in my position. It would of been worse if it was you rather than me." Jacob said to me, having me look away from him trying not to cry, "No one in this house was going to let that happen to you. You've held this group together, both you and Rick. For once you need protecting."

I knew he was telling the truth. As strong as I was in front of the group, I knew I could of died out there if I faced them alone. They all wanted to protect me, even when I didn't want it. Damn for being so stubborn.

"Katie, I consider you my sister, since we fought so many Walkers together and survived together. I would never let anything happen to you, even though I know you can fight off a army of Walkers yourself." Jacob explained to me, having me laugh and look back at him. His face showed that he was in fact loving me in the way a sibling would. I did see him as a brother, a older protective brother who would fight for me until the ends of the earth. I would fight for him too.

* * *

I walked out of the room and town towards me room, cracking my neck in the process. As I walked over, I saw Glenn leaning against the doorway that was open, seeing his eyes looking right at me. I smiled at him, walking over to stand in front of him, getting that light feeling in my stomach and my head feeling fuzzy.

"How's Jacob?" Glenn asked me aloud, his voice was soft in the quietness of the house.

"He's fine, just resting for a few days." I explained to him, "I'm glad that he's fine though." There was silence once more between us, having me see Glenn place his hands on my lower arms. Instantly I had a tingling sensation in my body from his simple touch on my skin. He gently pulled me towards him, having me wrap my arms around his neck and his arms around my waist. I was in content with this moment I had with him, which was less and less in our world. He pulled me into a tight hug and I felt him rest his head against mine, his chin on my shoulder and my heart beating faster and faster. All from a simple hug.

"I'm okay Glenn, I'm okay." I said to him, thinking that he was having a bit of a fit since I almost died today. He nodded his head against mine, though he said nothing for a moment or two.

"I was just scared." he replied to me, having me clutch him a little bit tighter. I knew it must of been hard for him to see me walk out in front of those goons. I never wanted to place him in pain, it was last thing on my mind. But knowing that it was all over, I was glad to have Glenn back with me, the both of us safe and the both of us together.

"I know you were, and I'm so sorry for putting you through that." I said to him, pulling away and looking at him, "But I'm here now." Even though we were in darkness, I could still see the light in hi brown eyes from the distant light in another room. I moved his hair away from his eyes, feel how smooth his skin was since he just took a shower.

"You'll be the death of me." Glenn said in a mischievous grin on his face as he leaned in and kissed his square on the mouth. I could feel the pressure of his lips against mine and I sighed, the feeling of lust coming through my body and my fingers digging into his skin to hold onto that reality. He pulled away, out of breath as it seemed as I danced my fingers across the back of his neck in a light way.

"I should say the same for you, since you are in fact taking my breath away from those kisses of yours." I said to him in a seductive type of tone. He grinned at me as he pulled me even closer to his body.

"I haven't been able to be alone with you for what seems like hours, Miss Marshburn. I want to change that." he said in a low tone, having a raise a eyebrow to his sudden forwardness towards me. I grinned as I looked over towards the stairs in case we were being listened to.

"What about the others, Mr. Rhee?" I asked him back, feeling him kiss against my neck and having me close my eyes.

"They're too occupied downstairs, I'm too occupied with the woman in my arms that I'm crazy for to care." He replied between kisses, pulling me into the bedroom and shutting the door. He pressed me against the door as I locked the door behind us. my lips against his and our kisses getting more passionate by the second. His kisses were becoming addicting to me and I couldn't help but moan as I threw his shirt off his back and onto the ground.

"Someone's more forward: I like it." I said against his lips as his hands found the bottom of my shirt. He stripped off my shirt, showing my black lace bra as we walked together towards the bed, still lip locked.

"You brought it out in me." Glenn replied back to me as I fell on the bed. Glenn hovered over me, kissing me a few more time as I felt his fingers ghost under the bra strap on my shoulder blade. I ran my fingers down his back, hearing him moan as we both got lost in the thought.

And in each other.

* * *

Three days went by and we let to go out to find more food. Since we were more paranoid about any more goons coming out, we decided to go in groups of 3 or 4. Glenn, Daryl, Myself and T-Dog volunteered for the run, since we figured Rick would want to be with Lori and Carl for a whole afternoon for once. Jacob wanted to come, but Carol wanted him to be more at rest in case he had something broken or hurt inside his body. The last thing we wanted was for him to get even more hurt and die because of it. So it was only four of us.

That was fine by me, I wanted to go out and find me some more Walkers to kill. It was a sunny afternoon that day, and the warm air was coming through a bit more as we drove out of the city limits and into a plaza parking lot. We took my truck, having Daryl and myself stand in the bed as Glenn and T-Dog rode in the truck at the wheel.

We pulled into the plaza, seeing mostly over turned cars, plenty of carts all around the area and come burned Walker remains in the corners of the plaza. In the plaza there was a huge department store, a grocery store, a few clothing stores and some furniture stores here and there. Daryl and I hopped down from the truck, weapons out and ready, as we walked over to the department store. I had the duffle bag on my back as a backpack in case we needed anything from the stores.

"Be back here in ten minutes." T-Dog said to me, having me nod at him and walk with Daryl. When we approached the department store window, I can see that most of the stuff was looted, the good stuff anyways. But I knew there were things that we could take. Daryl went into the store first and I followed, shotgun out and looking around the dark department store. He stopped near the front, seeing that we could hardly see in the store since it was too big for a small piece of light.

"Flare." Daryl said to me, his crossbow out in front of him. I pulled out a flare from the side pocket of the duffle bag and my lighter from my pocket. I clicked the lighter on with my kneecap, holding the flame to the flare and seeing it light up in a flash. The whole room was red now from the flare and I rolled the flare on the floor towards the back of the store, pulling my shotgun back out in front of me. But from what I saw it scared me, because in from us were about 30 Walkers.

And we were seen.

Daryl and I started shooting, hearing the groaning of each Walker that fell from our shots. I slammed a few faces off from the back of my shotgun, then throwing my now empty shotgun over my shoulder on a strap. I grabbed my machete from the holster, starting to swipe away as I heard Daryl now shooting with his pistol. I looked behind me, seeing both Glenn and T-Dog run towards us.

"Glenn, T-Dog!" I yelled. But before I could hearing them yell back, I heard another gunshot going off over and over again, having me look ahead and see in Walkers falling left and right. I looked over to Daryl, but I didn't see him shoot at all. He looked just as confused as I did, and as the last Walker fell, I threw out my shotgun and Daryl did with his pistol. Someone was alive, and whether or not that person helped us, we didn't know if they could be trusted.

You could heard a pin drop in the room, now that every Walker that was in there was dead and there was no sound. The flare was gone by now and I saw T-Dog pull out his flashlight. He shined in on the person that was helping us, having me see who it is. My heart sank, and I felt the machete drop from my hand.

It was my brother. It was Sam.


	32. Sam Marshburn

I was frozen in my spot, nothing moved around me or on my body. I can hear my breath leaving me and the machete hitting the floor in a loud clank as I saw my own brother in front of me. He was there, and I knew it was the real deal. I didn't care where I was in that moment, in the middle of a abandoned store with Walker corpses around me and my friends looking at me like I saw a ghost, even though I thought I did. He was there, right in front of me and I didn't care about anything else in the world.

"Katie." Sam said to me in almost a breathy tone. As soon as I heard his voice, the same voice that would sing me to sleep when I was a toddler, and the same voice that I heard on the phone when he would call, I knew he was real. I immediately ran over to him and hugged him, feeling him hold me back. I hugged him so hard I forgot to breathe, but that was something at the back of my mind. I started to cry as Sam hugged me in a fierce way, having me beyond glad that he was there with me. I knew someone in my family was alive, and I was glad that I saw one of my family members alive and well.

"I was looking for you everywhere, Katie!" Sam said into my shoulder as he clutched me tighter, having me stain his shirt with my tears, "I came back to the house thinking someone from the family would be there."

"Thank God you're alive, Sam. Oh thank God." I said in a out of breath voice, since all of my energy left me from hugging him and crying in pure joy and relief. I pulled away from him to look at his face. Since he was a bit older than me, his face had more maturity. I could tell he went through a a lot, seeing the weathering on his face and how piercing bright his eyes were against his tan skin and stubbled cheeks. His auburn hair, though greasy and messy, was still the same shade I remembered since the last time I saw him. He was wearing a thin blue shirt, blue jeans and combat boots, a backpack on his back and it was rather full of whatever he was carrying. But I was too occupied with my brother's face, the same face that would give me relief from worry of joy from fear.

"I'm so glad you're safe Katie." Sam said in a wide grin and then hugged me once more. This hugh however, was softer and less fierce, but with more love. I hugged him back and sighed in relief, knowing that one of my family members was thinking of the same notion: to stay alive and find everyone else. I pulled away then faced Daryl, T-Dog and Glenn who were watching the whole scene. For a second I forgot they were there, since I was too enthralled with my brother being alive and in front of me. Without hesitating for a second I grabbed my brother's hand and pulled him over to the group, a smile was on my face.

"Sam, I want you to meet some people."

* * *

"You kept the house in tact." Sam said to me as we both sat in the living room with a roaring fire. After introducing him to the three guys that were with me, we rode back to the house and I introduced Sam to the rest of the group. Rick immediately was happy to see him, as well as the rest of the group. Zelda was more glad to see him, jumping and almost knocking him over when she saw him coming into the house. Carol made him seem soup, Jacob moved to my other brother's room so Sam could have his room back, and Sam got to be in some of his old but very clean clothes. The group gave up privacy, all every did except for Rick, He wanted to know about the outside world away from our house and how it was looking.

"I've managed to keep this place from falling apart for about several months now." I said to him in a small smile, seeing him smile back.

"Well, it's nothing but a waste land out there." Jacob explained to us and both Rick and myself listened, "I managed to get out of D.C. before we were hit hard with Walkers. I had to steal a dozen of cars to get through to Georgia. There were a couple of times where I was with a group of survivors, but they didn't last long and I would have to go on my own."

"Was there any sign of military, or any government organizations of some kind?" Rick asked aloud in curiosity. I knew he was looking for a piece of hope that was there in the outside world, that world that was not in our home. I was hoping for the same thing, but there was a small part of me that knew that there was nothing that going to happen.

"None from what I saw." Sam said to Rick, but then he looked at me. He knew what I was going to ask him, he knew that I was going to question him. It was one of the questions that made me stay up at night thinking about and made me scared to even ask out loud verbally.

"Have you heard from anyone in the family?" I asked, though my tone was very soft and almost on the verge of breaking. Sam searched my eyes, I knew he was searching my eyes and making sure I was okay. He's always done that to me since we were children.

"I tried contacting David, Ryan and Harry. I know David and Ryan are safe together, they contacted me on my phone after the outbreak happened. I got a hold of Harry a couple of weeks later, calling him from a military all access landphone. I figured he was still at his place and he wasn't going to go anywhere." Sam explained to me aloud, having me nod my head to show that I understood.

"And….mom and dad?" I asked him aloud in a cautious tone. He paused for a moment, looking down at his joined hands that were resting on his knees. I was afraid that something big did happen to them, and I hoped and prayed that they were still alive.

"I haven't contacted them." He said to me, "I tried to find them as hard as I could, but I couldn't find them anywhere. I've had no contact with either one of them." I nodded my head again, having my heart feel heavy and almost as though it was about to break. Both at the same time, in which I never thought it was possible. But there it was, the dull feeling I was getting from the fact that I had no idea where my parents were. I didn't hear Rick get up and leave the room, through I felt Sam gently the my hand in his. I finally looked up at him and saw him give me a reassuring smile at him. Even through the dimness of the room, I saw the gentle look on his face from the orange glow of the fire.

"I know they are still alive out there." He said to me in a more confident tone of voice. I smiled at him, feeling a bit better knowing my brother was filly convinced that they were out there alive and well.

"I just want to see him again, Sam. I resented them when I left for New york." I explained to him, seeing him nod his head.

"I know you did. Mom and dad pushed you away at times." Sam agreed with me.

"And I pushed back." I countered back without thinking for a second of what I said. I felt him tighten his hand in mine and I looked back at him fully in the face.

"Hey." He said in more of a serious tone, "I don't want you to blame yourself of leaving. It wasn't all your fault, you know. David, Ryan and Harry knew it too, not just me. Mom and dad also contributed to the fighting that happened." Same said to me, having me not say anything for a moment or so, "But I want you to know, that they wished they would take back all the fighting. They blamed themselves for you leaving, and they would of done anything to make you stay with us."

I had a clear picture of my parents in my head, seeing him fight with me when I was younger and immature. I would scream at them and my father would scream right back, our fights were always like that. I then remembered hitching a ride with a friend who was on her way to New York, my bike in the bed of the truck and nothing else but my suitcase and backpack. I never looked back, and to this day I regretted not going back.

"But that's in the past now, and you shouldn't dwell on it anymore." Sam explained to me, having me hear his voice in a lighter tone, "Because mom and dad are still out there look for you, for us all. So we need to keep fighting and keep trying to find them, along with our brothers." I smiled weakly at him, seeing him get up and place a kiss on my cheek before walking out of the room and leaving me with my thoughts in the quietness of the night. The fire was still roaring, having me feel warmth all over my body. I found one brother.

And now I need to find 3 more, along with 2 parents.

One down, 5 to go.

* * *

With Sam being back at the house, I knew things were starting to get a little bit better. I wanted to talk to him some more about what happened to him since the outbreak, but I knew he didn't want to talk about it himself. He mostly sticked to himself, not being able to be around other humans for awhile since he was always on the run. It was hard for him to be alone, so seeing his childhood home filled with random strangers was a bit of a shock to him. But Rick and the others respected him like they did to me, telling him that this was his home and they were only visitors. Sam appreciated their honesty, and he was glad that they were willing to help out around the place in return for them having a roof over there heads.

I was about to go over another hurtle with Sam, Glenn. I was afraid to tell one of my older brothers that I was dating a man that I met several months back because of the outbreak, and I was more afraid of his reaction. Mostly it was because he would react in any way a older brother would: defensively. Since I was in high school Sam and my other brothers would be on the lookout for boys who would break my heart, and they would break their toes. Now that hardly happened since my father was a captain, that already placed a force field around me in school. But none the less, they were my older brother and that made them instantly my body guards. Who knew if it was going to be the same thing now they we were older and the notion of a man breaking my heart was slim to none. But this was Glenn.

My Glenn.

"What if he doesn't like me?" Glenn asked me in a worried tone, having me scoff him off as I readjusted the hoodie he was wearing. We were standing outside in the hallway as Sam was in the living room, drinking some coffee. I told Sam I wanted him to meet someone that day, and Sam was willing. But getting Glenn on board was like pulling teeth.

"You'll be fine. You're lucky with Sam, Glenn. Trust me, he may be the oldest of the five of us kids but he's the calmest. If it was Harry, you wouldn't stand a chance. Plus, Sam has been in the Marines for a few years." I said to him in a light tone as I stoked some of his hair from out of his eyes. HIs eyes, from hearing my statement, went wide in shock and I giggled.

"And that's supposed to make me feel better?" He asked me in a squeaked tone. I smirked and placed a quick kiss on his lips to calm him down.

"Listen to me, Sam is going to love you. I told you that before, remember? He's not gonna kill you, I just want you to meet someone from my family, finally." I said to him as I placed both hands on his shoulders, a grin on my face. Glenn nodded his head, taking in a deep breath as if he was about to go into the 9th inning with the stadium watching him. I shook my head with a smile on my face and kissed him once more.

"Come on." I said to him, pulling him with his hand in mine. We walked into the living room and Sam got up, hearing our footsteps. I saw him face us, in new clothes and fresh from a shower. Glenn's hand was shaking in mine as we faced him in the room. I saw Sam smiling at me and I smiled back, bringing Glenn to stand next to me and our joined hands in view. I knew Sam was going to love him, and I knew Glenn wanted to meet him finally. This was make my world a little bit better. Not completely better, but a little bit.

"Sam, I want you to meet someone special to me."


	33. A Clear Mind is a Clear Victory

I pedaled faster then before, feeling the wind hit my face and my legs burning through the fast pace rush that I was pushing into myself. I heard Jacob pedaling next to me and as we ascended up the hill and the truck behind us. It was getting warmer as we were going into another town. We were trying to find more food and supplies for the house.

The longer we stayed at the house, the less I was feeling safer. Although we had the place tight in protection, I wanted to find more living people outside the gates of the manor, and I knew the rest of the group wanted to same. But how was that going to happen since that house protected us for so long. We didn't know where to look, how to get there all together, and if we were going to survive.

Since Sam came into the group, he helped with Rick and Daryl in hunting and getting supplies., and I knew he would be a wonderful ally since he was in the marines. He knew how to hunt and defend himself, after seeing him several times take out Walkers with just a flick of a wrist. The more we fought Walkers, the more we became warriors and never looked back at our previous lives. But we were booming restless: we wanted a normal life again. This was becoming normal to us, way too normal and too familiar.

We had to travel farther to get more food, since the towns we hit before were now completely dry of food and medical supplies. The farther we traveled, higher our hopes were getting in finding a normal life outside the apocalyptic world. I waned a normal life again, especially since I had Glenn to consider. We both wanted a life together, a life that did not contain machetes, Walkers, and paranoia. I no longer wanted this life that I was living, a life of fear and concern, along with nightmares and self doubt.

We wanted a normal life.

_"Do you think we'll have a normal life?" I asked him aloud as we both sat out on the front porch of the house, seeing the sun setting in froth of us and having me breathe in the spring air and cool breeze that was coming through. Glenn looked over at me, having me see his face getting a bit too long for me to like. I thought of giving him a haircut at that moment, feeling him brush my hair past my shoulder._

_"You don't think so?" He asked me in a curious tone. I sighed in what seemed like defeat, feeling him massage my shoulder blade he knew was bothering me since the run earlier that day._

_"I want a life with you Glenn. And I mean a normal life: The both of us living together in a place somewhere. I want us to have jobs, normal yet bearable jobs, and dinner together." I explained to him, having some pain in my voice and I heard him take in a breath as I rubbed my fingers through my hair._

_"And I want that too, more than anything Katie. And we'll have that, you and I. After all of this is over, we're going to be far away from this mess and having nothing but ourselves to worry about." Glenn explained to me, having me stare at him with confused eyes. I loved him for his reassurance for good in the world: he was convinced we would have a life together. And I was too, but there was still that moment of doubt I had because of where we were. Glenn saw the unsureness in my face, then framing my face with his warm hands and having me look at him dead on._

_"I am promising you, Katie Marshburn, that we will have a normal life together after all of this is over. We will have it, I promise." He said to me, giving me a reassuring kiss on the porch. I kissed him back believing him with all of my worth._

A normal life was what we wanted.

But at the currently moment that was not a option as I flew over the top of the hill and down the slope only bike. I wanted to ride on the bike instead the truck, needing some exercise and fresh air in the lungs as I pedaled through the forest with Jacob next to me. He needed to exercise too, and he wanted to keep me company as I was riding. In the truck was Glenn and Rick, with Daryl and Sam in the bed of the truck.

We entered a new town, and we immediately slowed down our pace to find the nearest shopping plaza or area to loot. I kept my eyes open as I was the first one to ride in front of the group, Jacob taking the back and the truck being in the middle. Something in the air was unsettling and unmoving as we looked around us: Either no one came through here for what seemed like years.

Or we were not alone.

We found a small clearing near the road that had a new overturned cars, as if they were taking off the road by force. I pulled over on my bike and parked it near a tree as I saw the truck pull to the side of the highway, stopping and the engine going off. The group lied out of the truck as Jacob and I walked over to the clearing area. I pulled out the machete in my hand in case something or someone was going to pop out in front of us. I could smell the faint stench of burned tires, moist leaves and trees, and very old blood.

I slowed down my pace, almost stopping in my tracks as I approached a truck that was mostly burned on the outside.

"I don't like this," Daryl said aloud as the rest of the group waited near the car. Jacob was close by to me, walking just as slow as I looked through the truck and saw nothing there but black darkness. There was soot on the outside of the truck, having me reach out and wipe some of it off with my fingers and hope to see something.

"Rick, we need to leave." Sam said aloud to Rick, his voice sounded very scared and very uneasy. I didn't think of it at first, what my brother was saying. But I kept swiping away at the soot in hopes that I would find something inside.

"Why, what's wrong?" Rick said aloud in confusion, "Something's happened here. Maybe we can get some supplies from the cars and -"

"It's a trap!" I froze in my spot, seeing that the other side of the car was blow away to pieces. I can see through the car and what was blown off from the car and I saw Jacob, who was frozen in his spot. Something real wrong happened here, and it was starting to scare me.

"Jacob, Katie, don't you guys move!" Sam said aloud, his voice going into Marine mode. I looked back him and I saw him him look t me with large eyes. He caught something, his Marine eyes saw something we all didn't. I felt my breath loosing me. Sam caught the trap.

"What's going on?" Daryl asked aloud, taking a step towards me, but Sam shot his hand out to Daryl.

"Don't move, or you'll set something off." Sam said to him in a grunt, having Daryl look down and his feet with confusion. I looked down at his feet too, thinking of what could be there without any of us knowing.

"They're standing in the middle of land mines." Sam said aloud, having me feel a chill down my spine and a gasp escaping my mouth. I looked down at my feet, trying to locate where they would be. I looked around me, both moving anything on my body expect my head and I saw it. Between my legs, nice and large.

A landmine buried about 3 feet deep.

I was surprised Jacob and I didn't set anything off from the vibrations of our feet. But we both were very quiet, thanks to the atmosphere we were feeling. I knew that one false move and I was gone, gone within seconds and there was nothing that was going to save me. I was more afraid of what was going to happen now that anything else in my life.

"How did you see those?" Rick asked aloud in shock. I saw Sam crouch down from his spot, examining the ground in front of us.

"I've seen this out in the war when we would help. I was trained in finding stuff like this, though I never had to deal with it until now." Sam explained aloud to Rick.

"How are we going to get them out of there." Glenn asked aloud, having me looked back at him and see him look at me and my spot. I had one hand on the car, my fingers touching the window, and the other holding my machete. I carefully placed the machete in the holster and m spare hand hung at my side. I didn't know what to do then, thinking of how I was going to get out.

"You two don't move a muscle. I can get your guys out, but you need to do exactly as I say." Sam said aloud to both Jacob and myself. I nodded my head and feel a few tears coming out of eyes. I felt so helpless, at the hands at whoever did this for either sick fun or strategy.

"Jacob, since you're farther out from the landline trap, you're going to go first." Sam explained to Jacob, "Take your left foot and move it exactly two feet to your left." I watched Jacob, who was just as scared as I was, move his left leg out to another safe spot. As Sam was talking through to Jacob, I closed my eyes and tried to count to ten in my head over and over again, I needed to calm down and not think about what could happen to me if I made the wrong move. But nothing was working. I was going to have a nervous breakdown in the middle of a landline. I didn't realize how long it look for Jacob to get out in one piece.

"Katie, Katie I need you to listen to me." Sam said to me, having me open my eyes and take in a deep breath. I nodded my head at him.

"You can do this Katie, I know you can. You remember what dad would always tell us about strategy?" Sam asked me, having me nod my head in a shaky way.

" 'A clear head leads to a clear victory.' " I quoted him aloud, seeing Sam from the corner of my eye nod his head.

"That's right. I need to listen to me okay? Take your left foot and placed it right behind you by three feet." He said to me, having me move my foot over the patch of land I knew was deadly and on the safe spot.

"Now, go to the right with our right foot and step there." He said to me, having me take another step backwards. He did this to me for about a few steps until I knew I was at the edge of the trap. Every step to me was like a closer meeting with death, and I was playing right on the tight rope. I tried to calm down at certain points, feeling the pulse hitting me hard against the skin like a bruise.

"Glenn, go meet her at the edge." Rick said aloud, having me see Glenn walk carefully over to me. Just seeing him made the whole situation much better for me. He was about 3 feet away from me, having his hand out to me to hold. I had 3 feet between death and life. I stayed still for the last instruction.

"Now, take one last step with the left foot and swing our leg over." Sam said to me, having me carefully take one step to the right place and then hopping over the last land mine. Hopping might go been a bad choice, but I landed without setting something off and Glenn almost caught me in his arms. As soon as I knew I was safe and no longer in danger, I let out a breath of relief and hugged Glenn closely. He hugged me back, having me hear Sam utter a "thank God" Under his breath and the rest of the group sigh in relief. There was a moment of peace, until I heard something shoot out from the forest behind us. It sounded like a arrow from a crossbow. and I saw it land in front of Glenn and I.

Landing on the land mine that I dodged.

The next thing I knew I as flying back, the loudest sound of explosion surrounding me and the blast hitting me hard like a bowling ball all over my chest. I flew back, somehow still holding onto Glenn barely with our hands still intertwined and I felt the blast slam me hard against a fence. The hear made me loose my breath and the ringing in my ears made me go deaf for a moment.

I work up a second alter, everything was calm and nothing moved. I saw nothing but smoke and fire in the clearing, and I was covered in both dirt and soot from the blast. I was bleeding on my neck and my arm, but it was still numb to me. I was bring to get my vision back in front of me, things moving around in a hazy state. I found my voice once more as I saw the group surrounding me. I felt something holding my hand, or someone. I looked down to my left, seeing Glenn on his side away from me, not moving. I blinked a few time before realizing what happened to him, seeing landline pieces poking out of his face. I screamed his name.

He was hit, and my world was falling apart.


	34. Hey Baby

Everything inside of me was holding me back from crying out from the pain I was feeling. I was sitting new to Glenn, holding his hand as he slept in my bed. As soon as I came to, Glenn was rushed into the truck and we drove back to the house. I was looked at myself, seeing a gash on my lower neck and near my ear. But to me that was nothing, nothing compared to what happened to Glenn. He was in fact out cold when we were driving back and got him in the house. Carol took out all of the the pieces that were in his neck and face, thankfully they weren't big enough for serious damage. AFter I was looked at, Glenn was on bed rest for awhile.

I wanted to do nothing else, not even go outside until I knew he was going to be okay. I could fell the gauze on my neck and head, still having a bit of a headache from the whole ordeal. I didn't take a shower since the incident, still wearing the same clothes and having the dirt on my body and clothes. Rick, Daryl and Sam went to talk about how that happened and who would do that, but I was interested. I was more interested in Glenn and his well being.

So this is what it must of felt like when Glenn was worried about me. The gnawing feeling in my chest that never went away, the spinning of my head and the worried thoughts flooding my body like a virus. He felt this when I was steering the goons from the house, or when I was in the booby trap. Something told me that I was going through the same anxiety, the same fear, and the same pain. And this was happening.

This was real.

I said nothing for seemed like hours as I held Glenn's hand in mine, watching him do nothing but breathe in and out through his nose. Just looking at him broke my heart: seeing the damage on his face and some of his jaw. His face was swollen with redness and gashes from the pieces of the land mine hitting him. I was still amazed he was alive and still breathing, He must of pushed me out of the way as soon as the blast happened, thinking that something was going to hit us from the explosion. He was protecting me from ultimate damage, taking it upon himself in return.

I stroked his hand with my own hand, my thumb grazing the top of his smooth hand. Carol changed him into a spare shirt and boxers to be more comfortable and I was glad, since he looked so peaceful. I looked way from him and out the window, seeing that there was spring rain coming into the area and tapping on the window. The rest of the group was downstairs, talking about the recent event and how they were going to get over it.

I hated the feeling that I couldn't communicate with Glenn, or see his eyes looking at me and making me feel warm all over my body. There was a sense of limbo since we came back and he's been in bed, the scariest feeling for me to experience. Who knew when he would wake up again, let alone be able to function again. It could take him weeks, and that killed me not knowing the time. Sensing the feeling of being numb, I knew i had t leave him for a solid moment or two, The rest will worry about me and how I was doing, so I had to go down there and show that I was okay. I kissed the back of his hand and placed his hand back on the bed, getting up slowly and walking out of the room before looking at him one more time. I could see how peaceful he looked, but then again I knew inside he was just as confused and scared as anyone else would be coming out of a drama event like that. Closing the door behind me, I had to reassure myself he was going to be fine.

I walked down to the kitchen where everyone was at, seeing them all look at me with both concern and worry in their eyes. Sam walked over to me and wrapped a arm around me as we both walked to a spare chair at the table. Silently I sat down and pushed the messy hair away from my eyes.

"How's he doing?" T-Dog asked aloud to me, his voice was soft and low. I heard the patter of feet on the hardwood floor, looking down and seeing Zelda place her head on my lap and I rubbed her head in a loving way. She started to whine, since she knew something was wrong in the house.

"He's still asleep. Hasn't moved since we brought him back." I replied to him in almost a croak. I saw him nod his head. I felt SAm touch the gauze of my neck carefully, though I didn't move.

"Are you okay?" He asked me, having me nod my head silently. Rick shifted his eyes off of me to Sam with worry, thinking that I was going to snap like a murderer would. But I wasn't, I was only thinking of Glenn and how he was doing.

"I'm going to back out there with your brother and we'll inspect the place, check it out with any clues as to who would do this." Rick explained to me, having me look over at him with a nod from my head, "And for now, we were thinking-"

"I'm not leaving him." I said in what seemed like a bolder tone. The whole group looked down at me as if I said something so profound. I looked at Rick deadpanned in the face, showing no sign of weakness or defeat. I knew where my loyalties were at that moment, and it sounded morbid.

"We're not asking you to leave him, Katie." Carol said aloud.

"I know you're not. But I want ya'll to know. I'm not going to leave his side until he wakes up. I owe him that much." I explained to the group, my hands folded on the table in front of me and looking from person to person. They all knew that I was telling the truth and there was nothing that was going to either change my mind or have me forget. Glenn was the only thing on my mind at that moment, Glenn and his safety. Zelda nudged my knee with her nose and I continued my massage on her head.

"At least stay with him while we go on runs, that is all we ask." Rick said to me in a soft tone, trying to seem reasonable with me. I looked at him carefully, seeing that he was telling the truth and I nodded my head. He smiled at me, then looking at the group.

"Who did this was a step ahead than we were, and they must of had some experience with land mines." Sam explained to the group behind me, placing both of his hands on my shoulders and massaging them for me. I felt a bit better, since I was having shoulder pains from being hunched over with Glenn on the bed.

"This just means we have to be a bit more careful where we go and how we get there. Thankfully Sam saw those land mines before either Jacob or Katie was blown sky high." Rick explained aloud, his leader mode coming back in, "We have enough to last a week or two, but we still some medical supplies."

"There's a hospital several miles due East." Sam said behind me, "I know how to get there, I remembered since I was a kid."

"We can go tomorrow morning, it can give us all a night off." Daryl suggested from his spot. Rick nodded his head in agreement. I would speak up about it, but I wasn't going to go anywhere.

Not unlit I knew Glenn was going to be okay.

* * *

Couple of days came and went, and since I told the group I wasn't going to go on runs until Glenn was okay, I helped out around the house to keep myself busy and out of Glenn's room. He was getting better, the gashes on his face were calming down under the gauze and the swelling was gone now. But I knew he was still out of it from what happened, and until he woke up, I wasn't going to leave the house.

The boys came and went on jobs, most of the time getting more food and medical supplies for Glenn and myself. My injuries got less and less, the gashes diminishing from sight from under the gauze, though now I had bruises from the impact on the tree. As the days went by, I was getting less and less worried myself and more on Glenn. I knew he was strong, strong enough to go through hell and back, but since he wasn't moving in the bed, that made me more anxious.

On a late Sunday night, I was folding laundry and decided to fold them in Glenn's room. It was nice to sit with him in the room, only the two of us there. He was still out of it, having fresh gauze on thanks to Carol. I placed a folded towel on the food next to me and I went to grab another one when I felt something grasp my hand on the bed. Fingers, wrapping around my hand in a gently but firm state. I froze in my spot, not moving and thinking that I was dreaming. But I felt the hand grasping mien and I looked up to see him. There he was, looking right at me with both eyes open.

He was awake.

I dropped the last towel in my lap as I smiled at him. I scoot my chair over to him, lacing my fingers with his as I saw him smiling weakly at me. He face, though covered in gashes and cuts under gauze, looked just as youthful and handsome as the day I met him. EVerything about him made me smile just seeing him in the bed, wide awake and healthy. I felt tears coming down form my face and hitting the bed, though I tried not to cry in front of him. But there he was, looking right up at me.

"Hey baby." I said to him in almost a croak, trying to find my voice again. He smiled wider, having me smile right back at him. He reached up with his spare hand and stroked my face, seeing the bruising and cuts on my face. But I saw his eyes only one my eyes.

"Hey baby." He replied back to me, his voice sounded so broken but so full. I kissed the back of his hand with mine and closed my eyes for a moment or two. I was beyond glad he was alive and well in front of me, talking and breathing normally again.

I was whole again.


End file.
